Time in Pages Lost
by Kariotic
Summary: As they strike the deciding blow to defeat Salem and save Remnant from the greatest danger in its history, a freak accident sends Team RWBY, JNR, and Oz/car into the real world and into the home of Kay, a young man in New York just trying to do his best. Will they get used to the culture shock? Will they ever get back home? A fun little project to help me get back into writing.
1. Chapter 1

They had finally done it. Ruby looked around at the weary Huntsmen and Huntresses around her. Yang looked up at her from a kneeling position, slowly raising a metal thumb. Standing before Weiss stood next to her, leaning on a Dust-spent Myrtenaster. Blake sat to Ruby's left, sighing as she took in the scene around them. She was too tired to stop Ruby from approaching the giant stone statue of the monstrous woman that was Salem. Around the statue lay the shattered remains of the Relics that team RWBY, JNR, and Oscar had gathered over the years. They had activated the Relics while fighting Salem, trapping her in a circle of light, similar to the God of Light's power. Once immobilized, Ruby was able to freeze her with the most powerfully concentrated Silver Eye flash, encasing the Queen of Grimm in stone.

"Will it keep her?" Oscar spoke first. Looking closely, Ruby noticed that the pieces of the Relics formed a perfect circle around the frozen woman. As though in response to the boy's question, a sudden pulse of light from the ground enveloped the statue and appeared to completely cover the entire frozen being in a bright light similar to Ruby's final attack. When Ruby removed her hands away from her face, she found Salem to be encased in what looked like silver.

The war was won. Watts and Hazel were heavily shackled and being escorted by Atlesian guards, and a heavily damaged metal tail was all that remained of Tyrian. Winter stood back by Ironwood and Glynda, who were leading the effort to clean up the battlefield and care for the wounded. Ruby could see Sun and Ilia walking back to the small volunteer army of Faunus from Menagerie celebrating after helping maintain a perimeter against the Grimm.

"Ozpin?" Ruby turned to Oscar. "Are you still there?"

"Yes, Miss Rose." The older man's tone came through the young man's voice. "I think we'll be just fine now."

"What now?" Yang asked, rising to her feet. She extended an arm to help Blake stand as well. "Anything we should do?"

"I am… unsure." Ozpin answered. "The Relics are gone, as is Salem it seems. I trust Atlas to contain the statue in pure obscurity." He watched as Jaune, Ren, and Nora joined the rest of the group, just as weary as RWBY. "I am very glad to see you all in one piece after this whole ordeal though."

"Where to now?" Jaune asked. "Back to Atlas?"

"Perhaps for a little while." Ozpin said. "Though in time, I believe we can make our way back home. To Beacon." The mention of their school brought small smiles to the students' faces.

"Maybe we can even graduate properly after all that." Blake cracked a rare joke.

"I can't really think of anything less than that for a reward." Weiss added, with a sarcastic roll of her eyes. Before anyone else could add to the queue of quips, she heard Winter call out to them.

"Weiss, look out!" Her older sister's shout caused the entire group to turn as a ragged, angry Emerald ran up and threw a cluster of Burn and Spark Dust at them. She was promptly tackled by several Atlesian guards as Winter began running full-tilt towards Weiss and her friends. The projectile landed had at their feet and began beeping. Jaune barely had time to raise his shield as Weiss realized what was happening conjured a dark glyph around the bomb. She gasped when she realized the glyph was _immensely_ stronger than expected and began pulling all eight of them even closer to the bomb. The sound of an explosion, the sound of Winter's voice, and bright light assaulted each of them before the world around them shifted.

Ruby could only describe the sensation as a soft pull then an extremely violent push back before the entire world flipped upside down, right side up, then upside down once more. She was spun around somehow and then the world came back right side shook her head to clear the dizziness and opened her eyes. The scene before them was unfamiliar and completely different from the one they previously were in.

"Where are we?" Ren asked softly, voicing the question on everyone's mind. "Someone's house?"

They appeared to be in a large living room. A blue couch sat facing a flat screen television over a small fireplace. An analog clock told then it was 7:30. Above the fireplace was a floating wooden shelf that held several decorative trinkets. Next to them, Ruby recognized what looked like video game consoles, but she wasn't familiar with the brands or games on them.

Weiss looked over to a modest-sized kitchen, it looked like it was used recently, with a plate and pan in the sink waiting to be cleaned. The small island doubled as an eating area with a few stools pushed neatly under the extended lip on one side. Did a family live here?

Blake pushed gently into the nearest room, the door was luckily unlocked. Inside was a charming little office space with a laptop sat upon a dark wooden desk. Her gaze traveled to the wall opposite the office chair was facing, where nearly an entire wall was dedicated to an extremely large assortment of books. Two leather recliners sat opposite of the desk, framing the bottom of the book wall. A window gave her a view of flat plains dotted with trees that seemed to extend toward the horizon.

"I would advise not looking any further, Miss Belladonna." Ozpin warned. "We're strangers in someone's house. It would be rude to snoop around."

"But how did we get here?" Weiss asked. "Weren't we just in the Grimmlands? With everyone?"

"Yeah!" Nora agreed as she spun around, as though looking for something. "With Salem and everything!"

"Maybe that Dust bomb did something weird?" Jaune's suggestion brought Weiss's recent actions to the present. "And that glyph?"

"I tried to conjure something that could contain the bomb," Weiss explained. "A gravity glyph should have kept the explosion contained."

"Then maybe the bomb was the factor?" Blake said. "What kind of Dust was on it?"

"I only recognized Burn and Spark Dust," Weiss sighed. "I didn't exactly have time to examine it closely, you know."

"Ruby," Yang finally noticed Ruby slowly moving towards the floating shelf above the fireplace, and noticed the troubled expression on her sister's face as she appeared to notice little reaper's attention was drawn to a specific item on the shelf, a small globe. After a few slow, careful turns of the painted orb, Ruby looked up at them, confused.

"I don't recognize anything on this globe." She said, passing it to Ozpin and Yang, who took care to carefully examine it as well. It was obvious that they weren't on Remnant anymore. There were two large oceans and land forms that were vastly different in shape and name to the ones they were from. The country names were bizarre as well. Ruby spoke up once more, her voice almost a whisper. "Are… are we lost?"

"It would seem so," Ozpin concluded. "I believe there are plenty of questions on the table. The first of which needs to be answered: where are we?"

"That would be _my_ house." A new voice broke into the conversation, causing the group to jump and collectively prepare for a fight. At the other end of several pointed guns and blades stood a man in blue pajamas, still blinking away the drowsiness. His short black hair was messy. He had just woken up. "Please don't hurt me, my insurance doesn't pay very well."

"You live here, sir?" Ozpin probed, gesturing for everyone to lower their weapons.

"Yep," Came the curt answer as the man made his way to the kitchen. Silence followed as he filled a steel kettle with water and started heating it up on the stove. He then reached for a mug and a small tea packet from a cabinet and set it on the island. A tired pair of brown eyes looked over the displaced group quickly. Blake saw how his eyes glanced to her ears before continuing to Oscar. He sighed and said, "This is either a dream or I'm gonna have to call the cops on some rather impressive cosplayers."

Yang was surprised to see Ruby step forward first with a hand extended for a handshake. She couldn't help but feel both proud of her for shaking off the shock in such a short time, and anxious about her little sister approaching some stranger in his own house. Ozpin himself was surprised at the sight of the originally shy girl made the first attempt for diplomatic contact.

"I'm Ruby-" She began but was caught off.

"Rose," the man finished for her, his voice still dripping with drowsiness. The reaper flinched in surprise as the stranger continued pointing to each of them and naming them in order. "Yang Xiao-Long, Weiss Schnee, Blake Belladonna, Jaune Arc, Lie Ren, and Nora Valkyrie."

"Hey," the hammer wielder complained. "Why am I last?" Her unexpected outburst elicited a soft scoffing chuckle and a shake of the head from the man before he turned to Oscar.

"You are Oscar Pine," said the man. "Though you may be possessed by an immortal wizard by the name of Ozpin that can take charge if he needs to." Weapons rose once more. Slightly more awake, the homeowner instinctively put his hands up.

"Children, please." Ozpin commanded softly. The weapons lowered just slightly.

"So it seems Ozpin _is_ in charge of the body right now," He said. "Or you're all just convincing voice actors as well as well-equipped cosplayers."

"I assure you we are the real deal." Ozpin gestured to the group. Nora even made the effort to tug on everyone's hair to prove they weren't wearing wigs. When she approached Yang though, she was met with a cold lilac glare that threatened to turn red if Nora even tried to touch her hair.

"Can you prove it?" The man asked.

"Why should we have to prove anything to you?" Weiss asked back. Her question was met with a glare and a skeptical raise of an eyebrow.

"Why should I continue to humor all of this instead of calling the police and having you all arrested for trespassing?" He countered.

"Do our weapons count?" Ruby offered. She pushed Yang's metal arm into view.

"Not really," was the man's response. "Anyone with the right resources can have functioning replicas commissioned nowadays."

"How's this?" Weiss said, clearly starting to get irritated. A small white glyph appeared in the air in front of her. With it, she summoned a miniature knight with some sort of buster sword on the floor. The small Arma Gigas jumped onto the kitchen island and kicked the man's mug to the edge of the marble. Ruby caught it quickly as it tipped over the edge, placing it back on the island as the kettle on the stove began to sound off.

"That… definitely works." The man nodded before blinking hard and looking at the group once more. His gaze was much slower this time, taking in the people standing before him.

"So uh," Ruby restarted her attempt at introductions once more. She waited for him to finish pouring the boiling hot water into the mug and watched him wiggle the teabag around, darkening the liquid. "You know all of our names. What's yours?"

"You can call me Kay." He answered. "So how did y'all get in my house?"

"We were teleported here after a fight," Jaune answered. "And... that's all we know."

"Mr. Arc is correct. We don't really know how we got here." Ozpin added. "But to add on to what Miss Rose said, how do you know who we are?"

"It's... complicated." Kay answered, sighing. Blake noticed his eyes traveled to the clock in the room. Was he waiting for something? He sounded much more apprehensive than when he was at the business ends of several weapons. "I could show you."

"Please, if you can." Ozpin said. He wasn't so sure about the nature of the man in front of them, but as long as Kay was cooperating, he felt there was no real threat. The man came off easily as a civilian, but his knowledge truly bothered the former headmaster, who was admittedly notorious for his secrecy over the centuries. How could someone from a world unrecognizable from Remnant know about his specific situation?

Kay, with his mug of tea, made his way to the couch and waved everyone over. Ozpin and Ruby sat on the couch on either side of him. Nora, Ren, and Blake sat on the floor in front of them. Yang, Weiss, and Jaune simply leaned against the arms and back of the blue couch. Kay reached for a small remote turned on the television, with a blue light showing that one of the game consoles had also been activated. A few button presses later and a red logo of a rooster and a set of teeth appeared on the screen.

Blake caught Kay as he sighed and muttered under his breath.

"I swear I've read this fanfiction before."

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**Author's Note: Heyo there, Kariotic here! For the few curious followers of mine, I decided it was time to change my username to something less personal.**

** Would you look at that? I'm not dead as a writer just yet! I know I haven't written anything in a while,for both my fanfic and original works, so I wanted to try a fun idea as a way to ease my mind back into writing again. It's nowhere near an original idea, and I know I'm pretty rusty in general, but it just really entertained me while I thought it up, so I thought, 'fuck it, why not?' I hope y'all enjoy reading it as much as I do writing for reading!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Eyo again, Kariotic here! Thanks for the follow and favorite, it really helps me get motivated to continue writing, no matter how small the following is. Enjoy the chapter and leave any comments,constructive criticisms, or even suggestions in the reviews, as I usually do respond to them in future updates.**

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"And that's it." Kay paused the video that was the RWBY finale, where they had defeated Salem in the same way they had done in their reality.

"We are… a TV show?" Weiss finally spoke up after an awkward silence. "And we're…"

"Fictional characters." Blake finished for her. She had been shivering ever since she had seen Adam's death once more. Yang moved over next to her partner on the floor at the start of the episode, knowing where the sequence was leading.

"I always wanted to be on TV," Nora made an attempt to bring levity to the shocked room. Her hands were intertwined with Ren, who had made sure to comfort her during the Kuroyuri episode. "I never thought people would be watching my _every_ move!"

"How many people are aware of this… show?" Ozpin asked. The young boy's face was ashen with the elder's shock, his hands steepled in front of his mouth. Kay took a moment to calculate the answer. The original RWBY episodes on YouTube had millions of views and the RT site episodes didn't have a view-count, so there was no solid number he could give.

"These episodes have garnered millions of views over the years." Kay said after while. "Thousands of people were, and maybe still are, fans of this series."

"So we'd be recognized as characters in this show?" Ren asked. "Would it be dangerous to be seen outside?"

"Probably not," Kay shrugged. "That finale aired online several years ago. I can't say for myself that the fandom is very active, but I doubt anyone out here would spot you on sight."

"Speaking of 'out here,'" Blake asked, as Yang rose from beside her and the Faunus moved to stand as well. "Where would that be?"

"Glen Plains, New York, United States, North America, Earth." Kay answered. Before anyone could ask, he continued. "I'm sure you're all unfamiliar with most of those words, but there really isn't time for me to explain the world's history and geography."

"Understood." Ozpin sighed, pinching his nose. To think that so many people were aware of his past was harrowing to say the least. "I'm going to need some time to take this all in."A soft green glow emanated from the young teen's body as Ozpin relinquished control. Once the process was finished, Oscar smiled sheepishly at Kay who answered with an understanding nod.

"At least he can sleep on it whenever he wants." Yang snarked. "So, we're fictional characters in that have been brought to the real world. What can we do about that now?"

"Does this world have Dust or Aura?" Weiss asked the local inhabitant. Kay shook his head. The heiress sighed. "Then no, we have no way of solving the issue on this side of... reality."

"If my memory of similar science-fiction premises tells me anything," Kay said, "You should stay close to where you landed because the other side might already be working on a way to bring you back."

"Is that an invitation?" Yang asked. Kay flinched at the question, and for a second it seemed as though he might refute that. Instead he shook his head and put his head in his hands.

"It's not like your Lien would work here," The man shrugged. "And I don't exactly earn enough to pay for even the cheapest hotel rooms for y'all to stay in for an undetermined amount of time."

"Do you even have enough room?" Weiss asked.

"Two bedrooms and two baths," Kay answered, holding up two fingers. He pointed at the room he had emerged from earlier that day and once more to a door past the office. "Enough room for two more to sleep on the floor in each bedroom. I can sleep on the couch."

"You're surprisingly okay with all of this." Ren said with a curious smile. "I don't know what I'd be thinking in your position."

"Oh trust me, my mind is still doing cartwheels trying to understand this." Kay replied with a soft chuckle. He was interrupted from his next thought as a stomach's growl echoed through the room. "And now it's almost noon and I haven't eaten breakfast."

"So we're all staying here for the time being?" Ruby asked, looking to her friends with uncertainty. Kay shrugged and nodded. RWBY, JNR, and Oscar shared a look, as though communicating telepathically before looking back at Kay with a unified hooded girl zoomed at Kay and attacked him with a fierce hug. "Thank you Kay!"

The rest of the crew gave similar messages of gratitude in their very own ways as Ruby finally let go of their new friend. Then, multiple stomach growled in starving harmony.

"Alright," Kay said, getting the attention of the Hunters. "If y'all are staying here, you're gonna need more than one change of clothes. Second, I don't have enough eggs for all ten of us, so I'll need to go out and order some."

"How could we help?" Jaune asked.

"I don't have a bus for all of us to travel in to the store." Kay mused aloud. "Jaune and Nora, your clothes look closest to normal civilian wear. You two can help me get clothes and carry food back here."

"Heard you loud and clear!" Nora saluted. Kay, who was much more awake now, saluted back and walked briskly back to his room. Within minutes, he had changed into dark jeans and a grey hoodie.

"Here are our sizes," Weiss handed Kay a piece of names and numbers on it. She carefully pointed out each column and row for Kay, making sure he understood what he was looking at. "Tops, pants, shoes, and underwear. Nora could help you with that last part."

"That's convenient, thanks." Kay remarked, glancing over the data. Even Oscar gave his sizes. Made sense, no one would want to be stuck wearing overalls every single day. "Any preferences for breakfast sandwiches?"

"I'd prefer a tuna salad sandwich if they have," Blake answered. "Chicken is fine if they don't."

"Got it," Kay nodded, retrieving his car keys from a coat hook in the kitchen. He turned to Jaune and Nora and seemed to remember something. "You should probably disarm yourselves before we get out there."

"So Kay," Jaune spoke, breaking the awkward silence that filled the drive. "You live alone?"

"For the most part, yeah." Kay answered, glancing at his mirror before he turned left. "Lived with a girlfriend for a while, but we broke up a long time ago."

"She didn't happen to leave any clothes?" Jaune asked.

"As super convenient as that would be," Kay said, pulling into a strip mall. "Her clothes wouldn't fit everyone back home."

The strip mall was a rather modest affair. There were several small restaurants that they could choose from, Kay made sure to keep them in mind. A large furniture store sat at the start of the complex, so that would be a good place to find any replacements if any accidents occurred. It was a conveniently placed strip mall between home and work that Kay visited when he didn't feel like cooking, which was often. Nora expressed interest in the local frozen yogurt shop, but Jaune quickly shut her down to focus on the problems at hand.

"Wouldn't you know that already?" Nora butt in from the backseat. She had already unbuckled her seat before Kay could even park. "You have _seven_ sisters!"

"I'm just trying to make conversation, Nora." Jaune admitted. He followed Kay's lead as he exited the car. Nora totally didn't slam the door as she joined the two young men.

"Welcome to the only decent clothing store in town." Kay gestured to the large sign above them in navy letters.

"Is there a _New_ Navy?" Nora asked. The quip scored a snort from Kay who just shook his head and made his way to the door. The older man took a deep breath and led the trio towards the women's department.

Meanwhile, back at the home, Oscar and Blake could be found reading in Kay's office. Blake was reading what appeared to be a graphic novel, while Oscar was reading through a poetry book. Weiss stumbled into the office before noticing something that caught her interest. Despite it standing at the wall opposite the doorway, the busy eye would only catch the desk and bookshelf, playing off the object as a simple table. A quick look towards the floor under the table showed a small compartment. Blake was forced to peer over her book as Weiss walked over to the mystery table and appeared to lift the top, revealing a set of black and white keys.

"A keyboard?" Weiss said quietly. "I wonder if he still plays."

"What makes you think that?" Blake asked, turning her attention back to the manga once the mystery was solved.

"There was a lot of dust on top of it." Weiss answered. "Are there any music books on those shelves?"

Rather than wait for Blake to search for one, Weiss walked over and started looking for them herself. Towards the front end of one of the lower shelves, she found several thin booklets with unfamiliar names on them. Bach? Beethoven? Tchaikovsky? Opening the books revealed unfamiliar pieces with varying levels of difficulty. There were little notes every few bars, and numbers to indicate finger placement on some of the more difficult areas. Weiss pulled out the small piano seat from its compartment and found a small lip for sheet music to sit on the open lid. After a few moments of clumsy sight-reading, there was a calming, simple melody filling the small office. During a surprisingly long pause, Blake peered over her manga to see Weiss having a little trouble with some of the notes.

"I didn't know you played, Weiss." The feline Faunus said.

"It was more of Whitley's thing, really." Weiss replied. "Though he was never very… good at it."

A genuine giggle came from Oscar, surprising both of the Huntresses. He wasn't laughing at what Weiss had said, he was reacting to the book he was reading. A poetry book of sorts, Blake mused.

"You've been enjoying that book ever since you picked it up, Oscar." Blake noted aloud, bringing Oscar back to Earth.

"I mean, some of the poems are pretty funny," Oscar said. "The rest are really introspective and a few get pretty meta. Even Ozpin had to comment on a few."

"Who's it by?" Blake asked. "I like poetry too, maybe it'll pique my interest."

Oscar closed the book, using a finger to hold his place, to check the writer's name on the cover. The name read "K. Grey." The name itself caused Blake to pause. She read the poet's name out loud, getting Weiss's attention.

"Funny coincidence," The Faunus took the book in her own hands and looking at the back cover, both inside and out, but there was no pictures of the poet, just a simple quote from Mr. Grey that she read aloud as well. "'When the clouds come in to drown your mind, when the sun saves the day but still stings, I give my written word while the rest of this world gave me nothing.'"

"Maybe Kay _did_ write it." Oscar shrugged, reading the quote for himself in an attempt to decode it. Weiss silently decided to table that discussion for when the homeowner returned and looked back at the piece she was sight reading.

"We never did ask what he did for a living." Blake replied. "Granted, we only met him today. Literally minutes ago. Maybe we'll get a chance to get to know him better?"

Meanwhile, Yang and Ruby were playing some sort of party game on Kay's television in the living room. Ren was busying himself by neatly placing everyone's weapons and armor in a vacant corner and was making an effort to clean the area where the group had landed. Kay had made it a point to let everyone know that there were no shoes allowed indoors. Thankfully, he had a large shoe rack by his front door for everyone to put their shoes and boots on. He looked up at the screen every so often to entertain himself during his chore. Kay said he would deal with the mess himself, but Ren took it upon himself to be a decent person and clean up the dirt they brought into his home.

"No!" Yang cried in despair as her character whiffed a punch and fell off the side of the stage. "Go up! Up up up!" Ruby's laughter quickly turned into panicked cries as Yang's character respawned and immediately started ferociously attacking the white-haired, dragon girl that Ruby had chosen. With a few choice hits, Ruby's character was sent flying offscreen with immense speed, much to the reaper's dismay.

"No wait, I wasn't ready!" Ruby cried as Corrin was launched off-screen, winning Yang the round. Ruby pouted as Yang pumped her fist into the air, mirroring the Little Mac on the Victory screen. "Best five out of seven!"

"Only losers keep bargaining." Ren popped in.

"You're a loser, Ren!" Nora would smack Ruby for her rash retort when she returned. A quick look at the clock showed Ren that it had already been a couple hours since the trio of Kay, Nora, and Jaune had left. He had contemplated a lot since then.

Were they truly stuck in this world? Were their allies already working on a way to bring them back and not immediately pronounce their deaths? No, there would have been a bit more of a mess, wouldn't there? Ren shook his head to clear away the morbid thought and focused on the recent revelation. Would someone recognize them if they stepped outside? Kay allowed Jaune and Nora out with him, so they must not be too easily recognized. Could they assimilate into the community if it turned out they were truly stuck in this world? Which reality was the true reality: Kay's or their own? Was Ozpin already thinking these very same questions? Probably. Ren was shaken out of his stupor as he heard the sound of keys jingling and the front door getting unlocked from outside.

"A little help, please!" Kay grunted as he held four bags of clothes in his hands followed by Nora with several more, including some shoe boxes. Jaune was wisely left to hold the bag of food; no doubt Nora would have eaten most of it on the way home.

All casual pastime participation throughout the house paused as all of the displaced Remnant citizens looked over the clothes Kay had brought for them. Each of them had three different tops and four different bottoms. Kay organized piles of clothes for each of them. Nora placed smaller bags with the brands "PINK" and "Victoria's Secret" on it, which revealed women's undergarments upon an inspecting glance. Ren redirected his attention as Kay gestured the green-themed hunter to his own pile of similarly colored clothes, complete with a shoebox.

"Get changed," Kay said, sitting down on the couch with a say. Ren watched the man close his eyes, no doubt mentally exhausted from all the planning he had done for them. "You can wash up in the bathrooms or whatever else you need to do. We can eat afterwards." Team RWBY took their respectively piles and brought them into Kay's master bedroom. JNR and Oscar did the same in the spare bedroom.

"I'm lucky my savings are good. I'm gonna have speed up my next submission." He pulled out his phone and began texting, slowly dictating his message as he typed it. "Need to meet up, when are you free?"

Kay sighed again as he wiped the sweat off his forehead. They were lucky too; it was Sunday. If they had dropped in during the week, who knows what could have happened while he was working! Luck again has its hold, as he no longer shared the living space and had the extra room. Unluckily, he'll need to speed up writing and writing took time and with work he had no time and dealing with all eight of the visitors would mean even more time and more money lost. Kay scrunched his eyes closed and took several deep breaths.

"We'll deal with those fires when they start smoking." Kay said, defeated. "I need it to be Saturday already."

"Hey Kay," Yang's voice called from behind the couch. Multiple pairs of steps gathered behind him as well. "You good?"

"Yeah." Kay answered simply as he turned to see the group. "How do y'all like the clothes?"

Ruby was dressed in black skinny jeans and a dark red t-shirt. Next to her was Blake, wearing a dark blue jeans and a purple sweater. Weiss wore light blue skinny jeans, a soft white Henley shirt and a grey cardigan sweater. Yang wore brown cargo pants and a black Thrasher t-shirt. She could just use her boots, but Kay got her some basic running sneakers. Jaune was pretty proud of his outfit, having chosen it himself: he wore a simple dark blue t-shirt and a black zipper hoodie with a graphic design similar to his Pumpkin Pete sweater. He already brought his own jeans with him, so there was less clothes to get him. Nora had jean shorts and a pink tee with a denim jacket over it. Ren chose to put on a green sweater and simple white jeans. Oscar wore a brown polo t-shirt and dark blue jeans.

The clothes fit each person so perfectly, they could have been models in pictures! Having their clothes sizes was definitely a huge help in the process and Kay was so glad Nora was there to remind the two other boys about underwear. _Ah youth,_ Kay mused with a little salt in his mind. _How I miss being that athletically fit__._

"Right," Kay said, after no complaints were made. He made his way to the kitchen counter, where the bag of breakfast sandwiches sat. "I realize our initial meeting wasn't the most… friendly, but I'm willing to open up a bit more to help ease you guys in and help y'all feel at home." That seemed to bring some relaxed smiles to their faces. "You guys can ask me anything while we eat, how's that?"

There was obviously no room for everyone to fit in the kitchen, so everyone grabbed a sandwich and sat in the living room once more. Blake happily munched on a tuna salad sandwich while everyone else had a regular sausage, egg, and cheese sandwich. Kay sat cross-legged in front of them, owning up to his offer of answering any question, like a weird convention panel. Once everyone was comfortable, and awkward silence filled the air as no one knew how to begin. Blake made the decision to break the ice by raising her hand, causing Kay to tilt his head, amused, and call on her.

"What do you do for a living?" Blake asked the first question, glancing to the wide open door to his office. Kay also noticed that Oscar was holding a familiar book.

"I'm a teacher at the local college." Kay answered. "I also do a little writing on the side."

"Like poems?" Oscar raised the book in question. Kay easily identified the poetry book.

"Yup," the familiar sight brought a small smile to Kay's face. The confirmation was a surprise to them, as he saw a lot of interest towards his office. "That's mine. As are several more on the shelves in my office. Some poetry and some short stories. Nothing groundbreaking, really."

"Do you play piano?" Weiss asked, almost immediately. "You have several songbooks in your collection as well."

"When I was younger, yes." Kay answered after swallowing a bite of his sandwich. "I took lessons as a kid and I used to teach other relatives. I play a little when I have writer's block and some free time, which isn't much nowadays."

"Whaddya teach?" Yang asked, already done with her first sandwich and walking over to the kitchen for seconds.

"Wouldn't you that make you a professor?" Nora added, calling and catching a third sandwich from Yang all the way in the kitchen.

"Nah," Kay shook his head, eyebrows still raised in reaction to the impressive sandwich catch. "I'm just a regular English teacher for the more basic classes. Don't need to be a professor to do that at a college." He was glad to have thought of this idea. He normally saved this for the start of each semester to break the ice in class. The rest of the afternoon was filled with much more casual questions, like favorite colors and other trivial things. It wasn't until Nora asked what the world's movies were like that Kay decided to break out his old DVDs.

Ren, Ruby, Jaune, Nora, and Yang were particularly enjoying Rush Hour, as Blake and Weiss decided to start having a deep conversation after the group watched Inception over some tea in the kitchen. Kay felt slightly bad for Nora and Ruby; they looked plenty confused at the ending.

"Do you really not have any coffee, Kay?" Weiss asked. "Not that this isn't good tea, I'd much rather prefer coffee."

"Seeing as I'm lactose intolerant, no." Kay answered, sipping from his own cup. "Besides, tea is healthier." Blake nodded in agreement as she finished off her cup and made to pour herself more hot water.

Kay's gaze traveled through his normally quiet one floor home. From the calm discourse of the kitchen to the raucous enjoyment in the living room and Oscar trying to peacefully read one of the many fantasy books from the shelves in the office. It was like having a party, except the party-goers are going to be staying here indefinitely. A glance at the clock told him that it was nearing 10 PM already, the movies had really helped to pad the hours.

"Alright everyone," Kay stepped out from the kitchen to grab the TV remote and stop the movie. "That's gonna be all for the entertainment tonight. Electricity is expensive and I don't want to piss off the neighbors on a work night."

Mutters of "party-pooper" and similar groans of complaint filled the room, though none of them held any real ire and began clearing out to their respective rooms. Kay made sure to pick up some of the pillows on the floors that Nora had been sitting on, carelessly tossing them back onto the couch. Walking over to the kitchen, he noticed Blake and Weiss's mugs were waiting alongside a few small plates in the sink. It wasn't until he was done cleaning that he noticed that there was one last person still in the living area. Kay walked to his office, where Oscar was still reading his book. A sizable pile of books were on the floor next to his seat; he had been reading this entire time, choosing not to join the others during the movies. That idea surprised Kay, as any teenager would have been excited to watch the movies he had. So he went with a hunch.

"Ozpin?" He probed carefully. "Is that you still up reading late?" That garnered a soft chuckle from the boy.

"No need to chastise me like a student caught after lights-out, Kay." The telltale wise tone came from the boy's mouth. Ozpin folded a corner to keep his place and stood. He bent down to start returning his read books to the shelf. The former headmaster caught Kay's upraised eyebrows in reaction to the voice. "Oscar fell asleep after the second fantasy story. I've been looking through your poetry in the meantime."

"Kid was that tired?" Kay asked, leaning on the door frame. He looked out the window and saw the waning crescent hanging above the horizon."I remember having more energy at that age."

"Please remember," Ozpin's voice took a much more serious edge, causing Kay to bring his attention back to the room. "These children have just fought the most dangerous enemies in all of Remnant. I wouldn't be surprised that he, the youngest out of all of those involved, was exhausted after the battle."

"Right," Kay nodded. He had been so worried about his own issues about this new situation that he somehow forgot they had actually lived through the hectic and usually violent world he used to watch for entertainment. "Sorry. Is there anything I can do to help?"

"You've already offered your home to us for the time being." Ozpin said, placing one last book onto the shelf. "That kind of generosity is rare, perhaps even rarer not knowing what could have happened in any other situation. I hope we don't cause much of a problem. I know this scenario would cost plenty in terms of money."

"Lady Luck herself seems to really have a hand in it." Kay joked and was rewarded with a short chuckle from Ozpin. "We're in a relatively inexpensive part of New York in terms of rent. If I still lived in the city, I wouldn't be able to help you. The college pays pretty well, and I could always dip into my savings if there's ever an emergency."

"I can't say 'thank you' enough already, Kay." Ozpin said, extending an arm to shake. "I can only hope our time here is short. Please let us know if you need help in anyway. Fate knows we owe you for it."

"Of course." Kay took his hand and shook it. He took a minute to consider tomorrow's situation before speaking. "I'm going to be working tomorrow afternoon. If you'd like, I can bring you and few others along. There may be something in the college library that can help you better understand my world."

"I accept," Ozpin smiled. "That was actually another issue I wanted to bring up, but I'm glad to see we're both on the same pages."

"Teachers usually are." Kay shrugged and smiled again. Feeling an awkward silence growing between them, he decided that was enough talking for tonight. "You should probably let Oscar's body rest as well, Ozpin."

"You're absolutely right." Ozpin said, as Kay made way for the Huntsman to walk away. "If I may have the last word tonight, Kay?" The man nodded. "You're a good writer. I hope you're doing well, if your poem's contents are anything to go by."

Kay stood in subdued surprise as he looked back at his bookshelf once more before closing the door. He made his way over to a large storage closet in the living room with content smile on his face, a rare peaceful visage that he hadn't genuinely felt in what seemed like years. That one line was the kindest thing he had heard from someone in a while.


	3. Chapter 3

**Heyo, Kariotic here again with another update on this little fun project of mine. I'm honestly surprised at the amount of following this story is getting in it's infancy, I never expected it to really grab anyone, honestly. Either way, I appreciate it a lot. Enjoy the update! Any reactions/constructive criticisms/plot suggestions? Feel free to throw them in the reviews!**

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"I hope you don't take any offense," Weiss said from the back seat of the car. "But shouldn't you be a little better dressed for your position?"

"None taken," Kay said, double checking his reflection in the rearview mirror before returning his gaze back to the road. He wore a simple black sweater shirt and dark had left the house in the care of Yang and Ren, as well as a to-go menu for a pizzeria and money for two pizzas. Kay placed a lot of faith in Yang, being an older sister and all. "And there's no real dress code for the professors other than: a proper shirt and pants. A neutral sweater and black pants are absolutely fine."

"Is it a big school?" Blake asked from the seat next to the former SDC heiress.

She had brought a few small books to read while waiting for Kay's class. They were each wearing variants of the clothes that Kay had bought them yesterday: Weiss in a light blue shirt and light gray cardigan, Blake in a purple turtleneck and jeans, and Oscar in a brown hoodie and jeans as well. Ozpin was sitting in the front passenger seat, observing the landscape as it flew past them. It was probably nearing winter now, the headmaster noted, as the cold air hit his face from the slightly open window. That was the first reason why Kay also gave Weiss and Blake beanie hats. It was also to cover Blake's ears.

"Not really, look!" Kay answered. The trip came to a gradual slow as the destination neared and the school buildings came into view. Ozpin saw three bland gray buildings sitting on a small square of a campus. Weiss thought the buildings were commercial corporate buildings until she saw a sign that their driver read out loud, "Welcome to Avera College of Glen Plains."

"No dormitories?" Ozpin asked. "Do most of the students live in town?"

"Yeah," Kay answered as they turned into a parking lot. The asphalt markers went from the usual white and occasional blue to yellow. Signs at the end of each parking space clearly noted that these were reserved for faculty members. "Students from out of state that come here usually share an apartment in town. We're not exactly notable enough to receive enough funding for proper extracurricular programs, let alone dorms around here."

"That's unfortunate thinking," Ozpin scowled, unbuckling his seat as Kay finished parking. "Higher education deserves proper funding."

"Take it up with the government." Kay replied, shrugging, retrieving his messenger bag from Weiss. They exited the car and walked to the nearest building. Entering revealed a modest reception area, complete with a couple people working at the main desk behind computers.

"G'morning Mr. Grey," one of the receptionists, a tired young woman, greeted them. Her light brown hair was put up in a messy bun and her green eyes appeared to be slightly glazed over behind clear framed glasses. She flashed the teacher a tired smile before looking to the rest of the entourage. "What's going on here?"

"It's 2 PM, Lucy." Kay deadpanned, raising his right wrist to show her the time on a watch. "I need three visitor tags for these kids here. Two of them will be in my classroom and the other needs to use the library."

"Alright, alright." Lucy's answer was sarcastic and dry. "No need to give me a whole novel, Grey."

"Drinking late again last night?" Kay guessed, watching the guest sticker tags print out from beside Lucy.

"Me and my girl's anniversary," Lucy answered, a genuine smirk on her face. She handed Kay the stickers and made sure to fake him out once by pulling away quickly. "Had a lot of fun."

"Nice of you to share," Kay rolled his eyes but wore a small smile as he turned back to the others, tags in hand. "Stick these to your chests, keep them visible at all times. Let's get going."

As they traveled through the halls towards the elevators, Weiss looked was able to glance into the classrooms they passed by, each of them filled with a diverse cast of students. She made sure not to look in so closely, so as not to appear too "snoopy," as Ruby would call it. Ozpin followed closely behind Kay, looking around with a casual curiosity to the bland aesthetic of the hallways. Blake was thankful for the short walk to one of the last doors in the hallway, a somewhat large one in a corner that would hold around 30 students.

"Here we are, my first classroom for the day." He said, stretching his arms as if to present something impressive.

"First?" Blake repeated. She had already started making her way to a seat in the corner of the corner classroom, where the two in-wall heaters met.

"I teach two classes." Kay explained. "We'll move to another, smaller classroom later for that one."

"The library, Kay?" Ozpin asked. Kay nodded at him as he put his messenger bag on his chair and turned back to the girls.

"I'll bring Ozpin to the library upstairs," the teacher said. "If anyone comes in and asks, just act natural and pretend you're my students."

Kay held the door to the library for Ozpin after the brief, silent walk upstairs. Upon entering the room, Ozpin was surprised at how small it was compared to Beacon's own. A small, circular main desk was situated at what appeared to be the center of this floor of the library, at which an older woman sat reading a book.

"Hello Miss Valerie," Kay greeted warmly, causing the librarian to lower her book to meet his gaze. She must have been in her forties, if her graying blonde hair was anything to go by, but her bright blue eyes were vibrant and alert. "How are you doing today?"

"Mondays will be Mondays, you know that, Grey." Miss Valerie said with a soft voice. Her blue gaze shifted to Ozpin, and to his surprise, she looked rather happy to see him. "And who is this charming young man?"

"Oscar Pine," Kay answered before Ozpin could introduce himself. "My friend's little brother. He just needs to hang out in the library today for some research project. Would that be alright with you?"

"Absolutely fine, dear Mister Grey." Valerie beamed, eyes still on Ozpin. "Our reference books are in the back right corner of this floor. If you need any assistance, you can let me know."

"I'll come by later to pick you up," Kay played into his act a bit, messing with Oscar's hair and causing the immortal wizard in control to scowl. "Don't cause my biggest fan any trouble."

"Speaking of which," Miss Valerie cut in once more. Ozpin got a good look at the book the librarian was reading and it was, indeed, one of Kay's other poetry books. "When am I going to get a sneak peak at your new work?"

"Eventually maybe." Kay teased before walking away with a casual wave to both of them. "Have fun, Oscar!"

Weiss was staring out the large windows of the classroom when Kay returned as Blake was reading in the seat behind her. Only one other student had entered the room while he was gone, a girl with short blonde hair and glasses, who was currently looking over her notes with dutiful scrutiny. The girl also looked up to see the teacher enter the room.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Grey." She greeted, catching the man's attention. Kay didn't seem surprised at the early entrant at all and returned a smile.

"Hello Christie," Kay said, looking around his desk as though searching for something. He appeared to realize something after a moment and glanced at his watch. "Actually Christie, do you think you can do me a quick favor and get me a small cup of tea from the cafeteria?"

"Sure Mr. Grey," Christie closed her notebook. Weiss watched a few more early students walk through the door. Kay retrieved 3 dollars from his wallet and handed it to the student. "Any preference?"

"Earl Grey, if they have," Kay answered. "Regular black tea is fine if they're out, though."

With that, Christie left the class with the borrowed cash. As she left, Kay retrieved a laptop from his messenger bag, opened it and began typing on it very quickly. He then turned around and started writing on the whiteboard behind him. After a few minutes, the board had an interesting line drawn upon it. It began at the lower left corner, rising at a steady incline before reaching a rounded peak, then declining at a slightly steeper angle and ending as a horizontal line at the bottom right of the board. Christie emerged from the hallway with a small cup and handed it to Kay before returning to her seat.

Idle chatter filled the room as class time grew nearer. Blake looked up from her book to see that students had truly filled the room and were either reading or looking through notes. She could catch a few of them talking amongst themselves about herself and Weiss. Would Kay give them an excuse as to why they were here? Speaking of the man, she looked up to the teacher as he checked his watch one last time and cleared his throat.

"Alright everyone," Kay's voice lacked any true authority, like Port's, but it seemed to do the trick. Conversation halted and everyone's attention was one him as he drew a line above the weird hill. "We finished our second text last week and I asked you all to draw what you felt the plot diagram for it would look like. Let's start with an easy question, what's the title?"

"At the Storm's Edge," one student answered. "By Lukas Sharpe." Kay wrote the title and author on the top line and turned back to class. "What can we identify as the exposition here, Christie?"

"Maxwell falls out of the boat?" She said, sounding unsure. "And finds the island?"

"What do we think guys?" Kay asked the class. Several hands went up to answer.

"Maxwell sneaks onto the boat," another student answered after being called. "And he meets Sofia Gardner."

"Very good," Kay commended. "Christie, what you were thinking of fits more of the next step, our Rising Action, the crafting of our conflict." The girl in question nodded, though looked sullen after having given the wrong answer. She remained silent for the rest of the period, recording Kay's dictations and following along as the class completed the plot diagram.

"Go fearless leader!" Nora cheered on as Jaune was currently facing Yang in an intense game of Super Smash Brothers. Ruby was currently waiting for her turn to play, eagerly looking over at Jaune, as the rules were that the loser switches out. "You can do it!"

"Not if I can help it!" Yang, their undefeated champion. Her Little Mac dashed across the dark stage and launched a flying haymaker towards the red-headed swordsman that Jaune controlled. "You're mine!"

"Yes!" Ruby yelled, and to her surprise, as did Jaune! She watched as his Roy flashed with a bright blue light just before Little Mac made contact, negating the normally devastating punch and countering the attack. Ruby mouth was agape as the screen exploded with dynamic lighting as Jaune's perfectly timed counter sent Yang's character careening offscreen to eliminate Little Mac's third and final stock.

All five Hunters shared a moment in awed silence; the best video game player had been bested by Jaune, who had decided to look at the game manual for a minute before his match.

"JAUNEY-BOY WINS!" Nora picked Jaune up with an inhuman strength and swung him around in a tight hug. "Jaune is the champion, Jaune is the champion!"

Yang was still looking at the screen in shock. She looked down at her hands, which were still tightly gripped on the controller, still in position to input Little Mac's Side-B attack. Ruby was patting her shoulder comfortingly.

"How did he do it?" She muttered, turning to watch Nora still swinging her leader around in celebratory fashion. "I had the best character, I made all the right moves!"

"You did that lunging punch move about 80% of the time you spent on the ground," Ren commented. "At least Jaune made an attempt to do more varied attacks."

"This kind of talk is why you lost in the first round of the tournament, Ren." Yang's scorching remark didn't hurt so much. Ren felt a tinge of smug satisfaction as the one who had eliminated him was eliminated by his own teammate.

Ren looked back to the kitchen, where two empty pizza boxes lay on the counter and several plates sat in the sink waiting to be washed. With a grunt, he rose to his feet and made his way to the kitchen to clean. As much as Yang was in charge, he still made sure that the place was clean so as not to irritate the homeowner upon his return. He turned the sink faucet on to begin rinsing the dirty plates.

"Hey Ren," Ruby's quiet approached surprised the young man. He didn't even hear her approach. Despite the exciting event they just hand, the little reaper appeared pensive. Unsure of something. It concerned Ren that she would approach _him_ in such a way instead of her sister. "Can I ask you something?"

"Can I ask why me?" The green shirt-clad ninja asked, beginning to soap up the plates and rinse them off. "I don't know if I'd be a better source of wisdom than Yang or Ozpin."

"They're all still talking about the game over there," Ruby pointed behind her with a thumb. "I wanted to get away from the noise a bit."

"Hm." Ren stood over the empty sink, the finished plates set to dry in a rack next to the sink.

"How long do you think we'll be here?" Came the team leader's question.

"I hope not long," Ren admitted. "I don't want to be so much of a bother to Kay."

"Me neither," Ruby agreed. "Is that why you always clean up after us while he's gone?"

"Yes," Ren nodded. He looked back at the rest of the small group remaining in the house. Jaune was now closely examining the globe of Kay's world. Nora was looking over his shoulder, throwing quips here and there about some of the funnier sounding places she saw. Yang simply returned to playing the game on her own, this time playing around with a different character. "But there really isn't much else we can do right now. We obviously owe the man. It's but a kindness to at least keep the place he's allowing us to stay in clean."

"I mean, duh, of course." Ruby said, chuckling awkwardly. "But I just really hope he doesn't hate us for doing this."

"I'm sure he doesn't," Ren took this moment to pat Ruby on her head, though the shorter girl immediately moved away out from under her hand. "But I think we're lucky we dropped in on him than some random stranger. Or even worse, the middle of nowhere."

"True." Ruby had to agree there. She look out the kitchen window, where the empty driveway was. "I wonder how things are going over at school."

Ozpin couldn't believe what he was reading. An entire set of encyclopedias sat on the desk he was currently reading at. Oscar had gone silent at some point, also in some awe of the history of the world they had been dropped into. Countless conflict and greed, wars that made and unmade societies and cultures. Man turning on man for personal gain.

_There are no Grimm or monsters in this world, _the immortal wizard spoke within Oscar's mind. _But man himself are the truest definition of moral duality here, it seems._

"Kill or be killed, indeed." Oscar spoke softly. Looking up as he heard someone approaching. Miss Valerie was currently doing her rounds after some students came in to study nearby. As a precaution, Ozpin and Oscar had to switch.

_Not unfamiliar, though it lacks a certain touch of what this world may see as fantastical_. Ozpin said. No magic, no Grimm, no Aura, no Dust. No means of returning to the world from this side, so he had to have faith in everyone on the other side. There was no telling how long that would take.

"Oscar!" Kay's voice called from somewhere in the library. The young man stood up and made his way back to the main desk, where Valerie was chatting up Kay once more. Weiss and Blake stood patiently behind him, the latter looking around at the small library. "Did you find what you needed?" When Oscar nodded, Kay added, "Did you return the books to their places?"

"Ah," both Ozpin and Oscar were so wrapped up in the literature that they had forgot the agreement made at the start of their visit. "I forgot."

"I'll let it slide just this once, young man." Miss Valerie warned, crossing her arms. "I expect you to follow the rules if you ever return to do more research."

"Of course ma'am." Oscar nodded in understanding.

"Oh please, I'm not so old as to constitute 'ma'am'." Miss Valerie rolled her eyes before turning to Kay. "Do have a good night, Mr. Grey. Good luck on your work."

"You as well, Miss Valerie." Kay replied. "Let's go, guys."

Just before the four of them reached the main desk at reception, Ozpin realized how dark it was outside through the main entrance doors. He must have been their for several hours. A closer look at Weiss and Blake showed that they were slightly tired. They hadn't attended a proper class in a while and it showed. Suddenly, a blonde girl Ozpin didn't recognize jogged up to them.

"Mr. Grey!" The girl called to get Kay's attention from a short conversation with Lucy. Christie finally seemed to notice Weiss, Blake, and Oscar standing next to the teacher and suddenly began stammering, "I-I'm so sorry to be a bother right now. I j-just needed to ask you something."

"It's fine, Christie." Kay said, giving a 'slow down' gesture with his palms in an attempt to calm the student down. "What's up?"

"I need an extension on the midterm," she said, fidgeting with her hair. She seemed somewhat embarrassed to ask for some reason. "I-I'm having an... issue at home and-"

"I'm aware with what happened, Christie." Kay said, cutting her off. His tone was gentle, though she looked as though she was waiting to be scolded. "That midterm is due next Friday. Try to get a little work done first, and if you find it truly difficult for you to continue, then message me right away."

"R-really?" Christie asked. She had such a genuine smile on her face, Ozpin couldn't help but feel bad for the girl. "I'll try, I promise this time. Thanks Mr. Grey!" Blake watched the girl walk away to join a small group of friends who seemed to be waiting for her in front of another classroom.

"What did you mean by that?" Oscar asked as they exited the building. "That you were aware of her situation."

"I always make sure to have an open door policy for students with mental health issues," Kay said as they got into the car. "And Christie was the first person to come to me about her anxiety and other issues she's been having. I try to fair, but not too lenient with her. She's absolutely capable of great work when she is able to work through it."

"That's very kind of you," Blake said from the back seat, buckling her seatbelt as the car started. "I don't think many people would be willing to do that."

"As someone who had and still suffers from a similar issue," Kay's response was quiet, but it tone got all three companions to listen in closely. "I know what it's like to live like that. There's a lot of people who don't quite understand it, but there's just as many people willing to help."

"Very true," Ozpin said, as the green light faded from Oscar's eyes, ending the soul swap. Blake and Weiss nodded in agreement. Professor Goodwitch had made that a point in a lecture prior to their first mission. It wasn't uncommon for students to return from any mission visibly shaken. "The Professors at Beacon are trained to do similar for students whose struggled after certain missions."

"If it means anything to you," Kay said as they started the drive home. "I really do appreciate that."

Ozpin smiled and nodded at the teacher. The two seemed to share some sort of connection, Blake felt. Perhaps it was because the two of them were teachers? The cat Faunus shook her head her and looked out the window at the passing scenery. Kay's mention of suffering from a mental illness resonated with her. She didn't want to pry; they had only met the man yesterday. She looked down at the books she brought with her today. Blake had a sudden urge to return to the office and read Kay's poems as Ozpin had. Maybe then she could better understand him.


	4. Chapter 4

**Heyo, Kariotic here with another update. Still super surprised with how many hit this is getting, I really appreciate it! For future purposes, if it feels a little slow or the jumps feel a little weird, I'm just having a little trouble getting the story to get to where it needs to be. If anything I'll add other tidbits/shenanigans that could happen here or previous chapters as later scenes in a future update. Kinda the way things happen when one writes a story as it comes to them, essentially off the top of the head.**

**Thanks for reading. Enjoy the chapter!**

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Maybe there was a bug at school. Maybe the tea was bad. Maybe the cold weather was a shock to the system. Maybe it was a part of his seasonal depression. Whatever it was, it was a bitch.

"A-are you ok?" Ruby knocked on the bathroom door as she could hear Kay coughing a puking his lungs out. "Kay?"

"Y-yeah," Kay's voice came through a pause in the suffering. "Could you get my phone? It's on the couch."

Before Ruby could even more, the sound of dry retching filled her ears and she scrambled to get away from the door and reached the living room, where everyone else sat with concern on their faces. She saw Kay's phone on the arm of the couch next to Yang, grabbed it, then ran back to the bedroom. Knocking softly on the door, she was glad to hear the Kay wasn't throwing up at the moment. The bathroom door swung up slightly, enough for Ruby to slide in the phone to poor guy.

"Thanks Ruby, I'm gonna-" His gratitude was interrupted by a loud gurgling sound from his stomach, prompting him to slam the door and return to his pitiful state of kneeling in front of the toilet. Ruby sighed as she made her way back to the rest of them. Blake emerged from the kitchen with a mug of tea.

"Still going, huh?" Yang asked sympathetically. She had woken up early to find Railen already in the bathroom, spewing sickness. "That sucks."

"Maybe it was the pizza we had for dinner?" Jaune shrugged. Ren was kind enough to take Kay's usual morning responsibility of making breakfast. Nora stood at his side, watching him make her favorite dish.

"None of us got sick though," Ruby argued. "Were you guys outdoors for very long yesterday?"

"No," Weiss shook her head. "And I doubt it was the tea he had either."

"I may have a theory." Ozpin spoke up, gaining everyone's attention. "There have been certain instances on a few missions involving a large amount of Huntsmen and a few civilians. The civilians, no more than three or four, would suffer from a sort of pressure from the Auras of the surrounding Huntsmen."

"Aura-based pressure?" Weiss repeated. "How so?"

"The civilians that were being escorted from a border town," Ozpin explained. "They never had so much exposure to a fully-trained Huntsman's active Aura before, let alone several of them. After spending even a short time with them, the Auras began to latch onto the vulnerable souls in an aggressive attempt to protect them. However, their inexperience with it made their bodies' immune systems go into overdrive to expel this forced change to the body. Thus they were even weaker during the whole escort mission."

"But we're not actively using our Auras!" Yang pointed out. "There's literally no reason for us to use it here!"

"Even so," Ozpin said. "I fear the amount of pressure from all _eight_ of our combined Auras, even passively, is damaging Kay's immune system."

"Or," a new voice popped in. Much like their first meeting, they all turned to see weak young man leaning against his bedroom door frame. His face was pale, but he seemed to be breathing normally. "It could just be a bad cold or small flu. I doubt you all did anything."

"Here," Blake handed him the hot tea. He nodded in thanks and went to the kitchen to retrieve some sort of packet from the cabinet. Blake watched as the man tore the packet upon and poured an orange powder into his tea. "Medicine?"

"Of a sort." Kay answered. "Vitamins to boost me while I'm down."

"Are you still going to work today?" Weiss asked. The whole crew let out a collective sigh of relief as Kay shook his head. "Good. Then you'll be staying in bed for the entire day."

"You mean your bed?" Kay asked, pointing back to his master bedroom. Weiss shook her head, but her team leader spoke first.

"We'll be fine if we move the blankets out here, Kay." Ruby said. "Seriously."

"Alright," Kay sighed, taking a sip of his tea. "If you say so."

"We _do_ say so." Blake said, still standing in the kitchen with him. She was surprisingly brave enough to put her hands on the sick man and gentle push him back towards his room. "Get some rest. Yell if you need anything."

The man gave no resistance as the Huntress escorted him back to his room. Blake joined the rest of the group as the sisters turned the TV once again and made to play Smash Brothers once more.

"Could we watch some TV for once?" Weiss asked. "Maybe the news?"

"I agree," Ozpin said. "While I'm not against you kids having fun, I'd like to see what the world is like on a live scope."

"Speaking of which," Weiss turned to the headmaster/farm boy. "You visited the library to learn about this world. What exactly did you learn?"

"Shhh," Ruby hushed her partner as the local news came up. Eight faces had their attention sucked in by news segment after news segment as Kay's world was brought to light. A lot of crime, a lot of corruption and greed, and many a blind eye turned from the true roots of the problems. The anchors attempted to give levity now and then with segments involving trivial matters such as pets or children. Nora and Ruby liked those quite a bit.

"There are no monsters like the Grimm here in Kay's reality." Ozpin narrated during the program. "Just man himself, greedily taking advantage of the systems they helped set in place. Then they blame others and use their powers to propagandize their positions to justify their scapegoating."

"That is… diabolically cruel." Weiss said.

"The world we come from is not so pristine either," Ozpin added. "If anything, there can be just as much corruption and man-made adversity in our world. However, we try to create much more positive propaganda for the sake of avoiding Grimm."

Ruby nodded, knowing that it was absolutely true. The White Fang still existed as an insurgent terrorist group for decades. There were still people who discriminated against Faunus despite Remnant's leaders coming to a peaceful agreement after the war. There were plenty of people who took advantage of their status as Huntsmen and Huntresses; Torchwick was a good example. A former Huntsman-turned-thief, the local police could only record his crimes while it took Huntsmen and Huntresses, and a well-placed Griffon flying above them to stop the notorious criminal.

"Speaking of home," Jaune began. The news transitioned to the weather segment, showing a light snowstorm that was to come in the following days. "I wonder how everyone is doing back home."

**. . . . . **

"Where. Is. My. _Son_." Julius Arc demanded, pounding on the desk. His clenched teeth helped punctuate every word with vigorous anger. He stood in front of a seated General Ironwood, who looked worse for wear after the final battle against Salem.

"Julius, I assure you we're trying our best with what we know." Ironwood replied, attempting to placate the blonde veteran. "I'd appreciate a little patience at the moment. You are not the only parent who lost a child in that incident."

Indeed, as Jacques Schnee had also made a point to barge in and demand to prioritize Weiss's return once it was deduced that their children were not killed in the explosion. Rather, a concentration of forces had come into play. Winter's background in Dust helped deduce the use of not only Burn and Spark Dust on the outside, but a rare, unnamed purple Dust that was native to the Grimmlands. While they were currently experimenting with that combination with what little of the sample they had, Atlas sent out more Hunter-escorted mining parties to find more of the Dust. They would resume testing of the Dust onsite, though there was no telling how long it would take for any progress to be made.

Julius Arc's blue eyes met Ironwood's own for a moment before the veteran hunter took the general's advice and took a seat. On the desk between them sat several papers, but more importantly, a glass bottle of bourbon along with two glasses. One of them was already drank down to about half.

"Care to join me?" James offered, picking up the bourbon.

"Please," Julius nodded, sighing as he finally relaxed in his seat. "The family has been running around like emotional headless chickens. There's nothing much else I can do but come here."

"So you're here on Juniper's orders?" Ironwood asked as he passed the other glass of bourbon to the distraught man. The blonde nodded his head, admitting that his wife had indeed urged that he make his way over to Atlas and demand for their son's safe return. "I swear, Julius, we're doing all we can and as fast as we can. Tai-Yang Xiao Long has already made a case of his own and is currently staying here until his daughters return as well."

"Have there been any updates?" Julius asked, taking a well needed sip. "Any news at all."

"As you know, there'd be much more… evidence if the explosion had ended up much more deadly." Ironwood said plainly. "I apologize for being blasé about it, but we at least know your son and his friends are alive. Search teams are working across Remnant and leaving no stone unturned looking for them."

"And Winter Schnee?" Julius asked. "She's normally at your side for the entire day, especially in times of crisis."

"Just as you were distraught at the loss of your son, Winter took it upon herself to lead the investigation." The Atlesian general took a long swig at his drink, finishing it before pouring more for himself. "She's been hellbent on finding a way to bring her sister back ever since we found out they weren't killed."

Indeed she was. If one were to traverse to the Grimmlands now, they would be absolutely surprised at the sight of a bright silver structures that harshly contrasted the darker environment around them. A lone messenger jogged from one building in the makeshift base to another. On the near horizon, one could see several armed soldiers guarding the perimeter. Entering the building, the messenger saw Winter Schnee examining an encased scene: an area of scorched ground right next to the statue of the defeated Salem, still glowing with regular pulses from the remains of the God of Light's relics.

"Specialist Schnee, ma'am," the messenger made sure to let her know he was here. She turned to meet his salute and he saw the bags under her normally sharp, alert eyes. She had been working nonstop to rescue her sister from whatever fate she had fallen victim to. "Ironwood has requested a status report from you, specifically."

"Understood, Private." She turned around to look at the incident site. The dark, scorched ground formed a ragged circle of damage that appeared to come from a solid center. The center point was a slightly deep crater, marking where the bomb landed where Emerald Sustrai had thrown it.

Winter sighed. She wouldn't dare interrupt Ironwood when he was in the middle of political issues. After the fall of Salem, the Academies lay in ruin and many people thought to be allies were revealed to be traitors that allowed for Salem's machinations to come to fruition easily. Not only did he not have a solid case in regards to the missing children, Ozpin himself was also among those missing. Ironwood and Glynda Goodwitch could handle the media and Council's attention, but in the end, Ozpin was needed to clarify the ends of the mission. What could they do next?

"No further progress has been made since we have started testing possible Dust combinations," Winter could hear the messenger typing out the message. Curse the Grimmlands and its poor connectivity to the outside world. No doubt the vile presence of the Grimm was affecting their communications. "Miss Sustrai refused to cooperate during the interrogation at first, but eventually relented and told us about the use of the rare Dust that is sourced here in the Grimmlands that had been combined with Burn and Spark in the bomb. Several samples have been used to test on subjects, inorganic and organic. She openly admits that it was last resort attack, orchestrated by Salem herself as a last ditch plan to eliminate Ozpin and his allies."

She stopped pacing directly ahead of the frozen statue's gaze. Even in victory, Salem would rob them of such hope. Winter took a deep breath before continuing her report.

"We have begun to test with varying Dust combinations, but none of the tests held so far have shown any evidence of progress." Winter looked down at the remains of the Relics that continued to emanate light pulses ever since the fight's end. "However, I cannot think that we may be missing something. Did the proximity to Salem's statue and the Relics' have an affect on the bomb? I recognized Weiss using a Gravity glyph as well, which may also be a factor in the incident. I plan on continuing to be a part of the experiments and will alert you at the first sign of progress."

"Will that be all Specialist Schnee?" The messenger asked, typing in the last of her speech. When Winter shook her head, the Private saluted once more and took his leave. He paused before the door to say one last thing. "Good luck, Miss Schnee."

The elder Schnee sister said nothing as the young man took his leave. She simply looked on at the spot where she last saw her little sister. Now, truly alone and not expecting anyone else to intrude on her, she allowed the rare tear to streak down her face. She _would_ find a way for her sister to return. She would not stop those experiments until Weiss, Ozpin, and the others were home safe and sound.

**. . . . . .**

Two whole days. That's what it took for Kay to recover from whatever sickness it was. _At least he was kind enough to give us clean sheets afterwards_. Blake mused as she read one of Kay's poetry books. According to him, this was his second published work. In both of the collections she had been through so far, she had seen a lot of works alluding to mental health and insecurities. There had also been some taste-breakers in there as well, as Kay had also decided to include some ridiculous poems with comedic or meta commentary.

"You seem deep in your thoughts," Blake looked up to see the man had taken a break from typing at his computer. They had both been in his office for most of the day, sipping tea and relishing the warmth of the home. Yang and Jaune were delegated to shoveling the driveway and front sidewalk today; the last two days were dominated by a snowstorm that kept everyone in town indoors. Today was a clear weather day, but it was still too cold for Kay to go out and help, so they implored him to stay inside to make sure he stayed well. "Any pennies?"

"You mean _Lien_ for my thoughts?" Blake corrected.

"No, pennies." Kay retorted. The cat Faunus rolled her eyes, but smiled at the writer's light tone.

"Many of us feel lucky to have dropped into your lap of all people, Kay." Blake said, not looking away from her reading material. "I don't know how much different it would be if we landed in the home of someone completely unfamiliar with who we are."

"Probably in jail," Kay answered simply, as if it were the obvious answer. "Or held in a room with regular psych checks. Or both."

"Really?" Blake asked. Surely no one would really do the latter to youth in need.

"A bunch of kids with superpowers and weapons drop in and tell you they've been transported from a world with magical dust and monsters," Kay said. "And they ask you if you can help them get them back home."

"Fair point." Blake chuckled as she raised her mug to her lips.

"And don't even get me _started_ on the whole immortal-wizard-who-shares-the-body-with-a-teen thing." Kay added, almost causing Blake to spit out her tea.

"You win again," Blake smiled. It really must have been luck on their side that they landed in his house. She took a second to look at the books in his shelf. "Kay?"

"Hm." Kay hummed as he sipped from his own tea. His focus was back on whatever he was writing.

"Do you have a favorite character?" Blake's question was simple, one between deep readers that she thought Kay would appreciate. "Among us?"

"That doesn't seem appropriate now that I know that y'all are real." Kay deflected. A minor coughing fit caused Blake's ears to perk up, but she relaxed when the writer raised a hand for her to calm down as he went for more tea only to realize his mug was empty. The older man took to his feet, revealing that he was still in his pajamas. "I'll be right back."

He exited his office to find the rest of the kids chilling out in the living room. Weiss and Ozpin were also reading books in the corner of the room away from the chaos of Nora, Ren, and Ruby playing UNO. From what Kay could tell, Ren was doing pretty well at causing chaos.

"Reeeeeeen!" Nora faux-sobbed. She smacked her man's arm repeated while Ruby looked at him as though he had committed some sort of scandal. A closer look showed that Nora would have won, she had one card in her hand, that is until Ren shattered her dream of victory with a Plus-4 Wild card. "How could you!"

"You don't get to win so easily," the ninja said sagely, ignoring the young viking's blows. "Now pick up your four so Ruby can have her turn."

"That's the way to do it, Ren." Kay's voice caught the younger man's attention. Ren watched the homeowner walk over to the kitchen, replace his mug's teabag with a fresh one, and poured the still warm water from the stove kettle. "No love, no friends in UNO. Just victory."

"Whose side are you on, Kay?" Nora cried as she finished picking up the last of her four.

"I'm on the side of victory." Kay said, walking back to his office before pausing at Oscar and Weiss. The farm boy looked up at him with a raised eyebrow as the man extended a free hand to shake. "Ten Lien or dollars says Ren wins."

The younger man looked at the game in progress, the players looking back at their conversation awaiting his decision. They didn't expect his answer.

"I'll be taking that bet." Ozpin said, shaking Kay's hand before he turned back with a sly smirk as the card game became raucous once more. Kay relished in the despair in Nora's cry as Ren placed a Plus-2 card. The writer stopped as a _knock knock_ loudly announced itself at the front door, making him turn away from his intended destination.

_Maybe Yang and Jaune are done outside?_ Kay thought. _It really wasn't a lot of snow_. He turned the front door handle in hopes to see the two blondes waiting to warm up inside. Instead, a man around his age stood smiling in relief. His green eyes shone with excitement and he wore a black beanie and scarf that had several snowflakes that were starting to melt from the warmth emanating beyond the threshold.

"Kay!" The man said, garnering the attention of everyone inside. A tense atmosphere quickly descended. Was Kay going to have an explanation for them being there? "I got your text, man. How are you?"

"I'm… good." Kay retrieved his phone from his pocket to check that he hadn't missed any texts or calls. When he realized he didn't, he looked back at the man with slight disappointment. "No warning?"

"My phone's kinda broken at the moment," said the visitor. A shudder wracked his body as a cold winter wind passed behind him. "So uh, you gonna let me in or…?"

"Um," Kay glanced back at the kids inside, who looked about ready to pounce. He tried his best to calm them down by waving a hand dismissively, though none of them seemed to relax. Turning back to the visitor, he saw Yang and Jaune emerge from far behind the stranger, as though they were hiding from him. "Sure, c'mon in."

"Oh, you have company?" His friend said as he stepped into his home and saw the large group within. None of them had said a thing so far despite the man waving to them. "They friends of yours?"

"Yeah," Kay said, allowing for Jaune and Yang to finally come in from shoveling. They shook off the thick coveralls he had given them to protect their clothes from the weather. Ren stood to help and take their boots, placing them next to a nearby heater. The man made to take off his hat as Kay thought of a reasonable excuse. "Visiting from far off."

"They uh," his visitor seemed to finally feel the intensity in the air once he took off his hat. "They seem a bit on edge right now! I don't bite, I promise."

"Yeah uh… it's fine, everyone. This is my friend and editor," Kay said stiffly, preparing himself for any outburst about to happen. The green eyes and styled red hair did _not_ help the situation. "He's visiting to help me with something about my work.

"Hi there everybody," the guest waved again with a smile on his face. His friend's cheery demeanor did not ease Kay nor the rest of them from what was going on. "My name's Roman!"


	5. Chapter 5

**Eyo, Kariotic here with another update! It's not really much, but I hope you all enjoy it! I'm starting to get the story onto a certain track, and it might take a while to write out properly, so forgive me if the next chapters take a while. Enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

"What's their problem? Was it something I said?" Roman wondered aloud as he joined Kay in the office. Blake had since vacated the room as the visitor entered the house. "It's like they'd seen a ghost!"

"No clue," Kay mumbled into his mug. "Maybe you remind them of someone."

"Weird thing to be so shocked about," Roman shrugged. "Now, to business. What did you wanna meet up about?"

"I'm gonna be straightforward," Kay began, steepling his fingers before him. "I'm going to be sending you a bunch of poem scripts to look through soon for early publishing."

"Another poetry book?" Roman asked, eyebrows raised. "At least you'd be returning to your roots."

"That means the long project's going on a break while I whip up some stuff for this one." Kay said, typing away.

"What brought this decision along?" Roman asked. He glanced in the direction of the living room. "Anything to do with those suspicious guests of yours?"

"It's a complicated situation for them," Kay answered simply. "And publishing a few short poetry collections could be good quick money. You know the college doesn't pay _that_ much."

"Alright," Roman said, rubbing his hands together. "How are we doing this then? Chapbooks? Zines?"

"No, no," Kay shook his head. "I'll do a regular book. I have a few new ones and a couple twists on some old ones."

"If any of them are like the poem about dicks then I'm sold." Roman joked. When he saw Kay appear to mull it over and start typing again with fervor, he was taken aback. "Wait, really?"

"I mean, it worked the first time." Kay shrugged, chuckling at the memory of the infamously childish poem in his first published work. "Couldn't hurt to try it again."

Meanwhile, the other room still had a tense atmosphere. The man named Roman with green eyes and wavy red hair brought back memories of the notorious Dust thief and Cinder's accomplice from Vale. This world's Roman sounded slightly different and lacked the trademark cane, but the face and over-charismatic persona he presented himself with definitely left them off guard.

"It has to be a coincidence," Yang spoke, breaking the silence. "That's definitely not him."

"Y-yeah," Ruby agreed. Her older sister looked to her with understanding; Ruby was the last person to see the criminal alive, no doubt this was quite the shock. "T-totally."

"Who did Kay say he was again?" Jaune asked. "His friend, right?"

"That, and his editor." Blake finished for him. "So there should be no reason for us to be so hostile."

"I agree," Ozpin added. "I believe we owe him an apology. I understand what it may look like, but it isn't like all of Remnant isn't without doppelgangers."

"You definitely weren't the only red-themed girl named Ruby in Sanctum," Yang lightened the mood with a light noogie to the little reaper's head, eliciting laughter from everyone in the room. "I say we give him a chance."

"I suppose it was rather immature of us to not give him any sort of greeting." Weiss's statement seemed to resonate with the rest of them. Guilt seemed to pool in the room. "Then it's settled. We apologize and introduce ourselves to him."

As though Fate herself was listening, the office door opened to reveal Kay and Roman had finished their business. Roman had a blue folder with the words "Grey Short Proj." written on it in cursive. Both men seemed to freeze like deer in headlights upon realizing all eyes in the living room was on them. Of all people, Ruby was the one to rise and meet Roman with a hand outstretched.

"We're _super_ sorry if we seemed mean earlier." She apologized. Her other hand messed up the hair on the back of her head as she giggled nervously. "You just look like someone we knew and we didn't know how to react. I'm Ruby!"

"Oh, no hard feelings!" Roman replied, shaking the small girl's hand with enough enthusiasm to shake Ruby around a bit. "It's nice to meet you all. You're all friends of Kay?"

"Yeah, he invited us to stay over for a while." Ruby answered, letting go of the editor's hand. "He said he felt bad if we all went to a hotel."

"Interesting vacation spot you've chosen," Roman commented. "Especially for the holidays."

"I guess you could say that," Ruby shrugged. "We're just here for the company."

"Is that so?" Roman asked before leaning in towards Ruby's ear. He whispered, "Good. He's needed some more friends." Ruby didn't know how to respond other than to give an innocent smile. Roman nodded to the rest of the group, as though giving them his approval.

"That's my time, folks." Roman said with a friendly smile to everyone before turning back to Kay. "Absolutely keep me updated on that thing, alright?"

"Definitely." Kay said, stepping forward for a handshake that Roman reciprocated with gusto. "Stay safe out there."

"You too, bud." Was Roman's departing line as the front door closed with finality. Kay to the Beacon students and scratched the back of his head nervously.

"Well that must have been awkward for you guys," He said in an apologetic tone. "If he had given me a message ahead of time, I would've given you guys fair warning."

"You definitely aren't in the wrong here," Weiss replied, sighing. "I think we could have been kinder to your friend."

"Not when he looks like a former enemy." Kay reminded them. "Let alone shares his name."

"What is his full name, for curiosity's sake?" Ozpin asked.

"Roman James." Kay said. "Born and raised next door to me down in Manhattan."

"Oh, so you're childhood friends?" Ruby asked. "I wonder if he has pictures."

"Doubtful," Kay said, scoffing. "Anyway, you guys hungry?"

"Yes!" Was the collective answer, causing Kay to laugh as he got out his phone.

**. . . . .**

The living room smelled delicious. The sight of it, however, was definitely less than glamorous. Empty plastic containers and soda cans littered the floor as everyone except Kay lay around with full stomachs. Nora sat beside him as they made their way through their second food platter.

"It's always fun to see people's first food coma after halal," Kay looked around at the groaning children who were not prepared for the goodness that was lamb and chicken over rice with extra white sauce. "I'm actually surprised Weiss finished hers."

"I wasn't going to let it go to waste," Weiss mumbled, fighting off the post-food drowsiness.

"At least you're still conscious," Kay commended. "The same can't be said about the rest of y'all."

"Bleh," Ruby managed, raising a limp hand. All three conscious members watched as the younger girl's hand fell and hit the ground with a _SLAP!_ as it met the wooden floor. Weiss began to laugh before letting out an impressive belch.

"Impressive," Nora nodded sagely, as the heiress's normally pale skin began to grow pink. "I've done better, but I'm proud of you for it."

"Eight outta ten," Kay added, bringing more heat to the Schnee's face. "I wouldn't accept anything less in this house."

Blake woke up on the floor next to Yang, who was still soundly asleep. Her snores weren't as bad during a nap, thankfully. A look at the wall clock told her she was only asleep for about an hour. She quietly rose to her feet to meet the source of running water, only to meet Nora at the sink, washing all of the plastic containers and metal utensils they used for lunch.

"Ren still out cold?" The hammer-wielder asked, finishing up the chore. A quick glance back at the living gave her an answer as Blake shook her head. "He always was a light eater. The food we've been having here should put some meat on his bones for once."

"Where's Kay?" Blake asked.

"Back in his office," Nora answered. "Said he had to work on some project thingy."

With that knowledge, the Faunus carefully stepped over and around her napping friends as she made her way back to the office. She was greeted by the sight of the man typing away his desk once more. He looked up upon noticing she had entered the room.

"Hey Blake," he said with a smile. "Feeling better?"

"Whatever was in the chicken platter you got me will tide me over until midnight," Blake said, still feeling her full stomach. "How're you doing?"

"Halal food has been a part of my regular diet since middle school," Kay answered, still focused on his work. "And it's still one of my favorite foods."

_Noted._ Blake decided to keep that for future reference. If there ever was a reason to remember it, that is. The Faunus resumed her position from earlier that day as she picked a random book from the shelves and sitting down in one of the soft seats. Before long, a comfortable silence filled the space. Only the rhythmic typing sounds from Kay filled the room.

"You never answered my question," Blake broke the peace. "About your favorite character."

"I thought I did," Kay answered. "Pretty sure I said it'd be inappropriate to say now that I know you're real people and not some fictional characters that have no real impact on my life."

"That's the second time you've deflected the question instead of answering it." Blake countered. "I thought it'd be an innocent question to ask, from one reader to another."

That last line seemed to catch Kay off guard, Blake noticed the typing slowed down to a stop and turned her gaze to check on the man, who was staring right back at her. His brown eyes weren't cold as she thought they would be at her pestering question, rather they seemed to bore into her soul. Deep in thought, maybe?

"Promise you won't be jealous?" Kay said, returning to typing away. Blake relaxed as she realized the man wasn't upset by her question.

"I guess," she shrugged. "I suppose that means it isn't me."

"Nope, sorry." Kay laughed. "In terms of character, my favorite character in Team RWBY was either Ruby or Weiss. In JNPR, it was Nora. Outside of that, for various reasons, I also liked Neo, Winter, and Ilia."

"None of the boys caught your taste?" Blake asked, eyebrow raised. She couldn't help but feel slightly offended for her and her partner, but she reminded herself that they were indeed fictional characters to him only a week ago.

"Hey, I was a teenager when the show came out." Kay shrugged as a nostalgic smile on his face. "I bet if you went digging through my closet, you'd find a bunch of merchandise and posters of those particular characters."

"Did you ever write fanfiction of us?" Blake asked. She felt her ears perk up with enthusiasm as Kay paused typing. "You did!"

"I forget you were the reader of the group," Kay said. "Makes sense you'd be curious about that."

"Answer the question!" Blake demanded uncharacteristically. "Did you?"

"You're kinda holding a version of it right now," Kay answered, nodding at the book in her hands. "_A Safe Haven_. Bit on the nose, don't you think?"

"How'd you get it published?" Blake asked. "How'd you change it from fanfiction?"

"The characters involved were already of my own creation," Kay explained. "I just eliminated any mention of Grimm and just made it a general academy for young heroes to protect the world from what I called 'Hellbeasts'."

"Interesting," Blake mused aloud, turning the front cover of the book. "How well did this receive?"

"It went well with the YA crowd," was the author's answer. "Teens and young adults love fantasy schools with superpowered teens fighting for justice. Why don't you tell me what you think? It's not often that I get someone to give me a live reaction to my work."

Blake took his request to heart, diving into the story immediately. Satisfied with the distraction, Kay went back to work. It was definitely difficult to write the amount of poems he needed for the book, but he needed to also answer emails and look over student midterm drafts at the same time. One of the messages he received was from Christie, and he mentally prepared himself for what it may hold before opening.

_She needs patience, not lenience_. Kay thought. She was a smart student but her brain was definitely not her friend at times, very similar to himself and his issues. Imagine his surprise when he saw an attachment with the title "MidtermDraft1" below a short message.

"Hello Mr. Grey, I hope your recovery is going well," it read, referring to his previous email to the class regarding his illness earlier that week. "Attached is my first draft for the midterm. I'm still having issue forming a solid thesis statement and would appreciate your help with it. Thank you, Christie L."

"Alright Christie," Kay took a sip of tea and cracked his knuckles before opening the attachment. "Let's see whatcha got."

**. . . . .**

Hours passed and multiple student drafts had come and gone with plenty of constructive criticism before Kay looked up and looked out the window. Blake was dragged out of the office long ago by Yang, who said they needed a new player in one of the games Kay had. The evening sky greeted him with a purple-ish hue as the last vestiges of the sun slipped beyond the horizon. A quick glance at the clock showed that the early nights of winter had finally arrived; it was only 5 o' clock and the moon was already out.

A slow creak of the door brought his attention back to the room as Ruby entered the office. When she saw that he noticed her, she blushed a bit but didn't pull away. She instead took a seat in one of the chairs normally occupied by Blake or Ozpin.

"Can I help you, Ruby?" Kay asked, amused. "Something you need?"

"Just wanted to hang out." Ruby shrugged, idly kicking her legs outward. "Whatcha doing?"

"Some students send me their essay drafts seeking ways to improve a potential grade," Kay explained, finishing the final notes on another student's draft. "Which reminds me, did you guys have a lot of papers to write at Beacon?"

"Oh totally," Ruby complained. "Professor Port only gave us easy short response assignments, but Oobleck always gave us long papers to do!"

"Sounds rough," Kay recalled the verbose professor. No doubt he'd expect long papers from the students. "How long were they, usually?"

"Two pages," Ruby sighed, before looking up at Kay's flat expression. "What? That's a lot to write!"

"I suppose it would be a shock to someone jumping ahead two years in material." Kay shrugged, twirling a pen between his fingers. "You normally get into Beacon around 17 years old, right?" A nod from the little reaper confirmed it, allowing Kay continue. "The show never said anything about the civilian side of education, but on this side of the screen, you normally start college around 17."

"And how long are papers in college? Ruby asked.

"Depends on your major," Kay said, nodding towards a specific frame on the wall to Ruby's left, above the keyboard. Her silver eyes followed his gesture to the diploma on the wall, with the words read: _Masters of Fine Arts_, with smaller text under it saying, _English - Creative Writing_. "Most of the papers I wrote for college were at least eight pages. Had one that was around twenty pages."

"How'd you manage that?" Ruby asked, wide-eyed.

"Played with fonts, increase the size of all periods in a document by one," Kay listed off, smiling as he remembered his less than stellar college career. "Plenty of time spent looking up synonyms of words."

"You seem like you were pretty organized." Ruby complimented. "I think I'd be pretty bad at writing all those papers.

"Organized?" Kay laughed the word. "Nah, I did almost all of those papers the night before they were due. I can't remember all the coffee and energy drinks I'd buy to help me stay up and work."

"But I thought you don't drink coffee?" Ruby looked pointedly at the mug in the man's hands.

"Sometimes the need for procrastinating overrides even the worst lactose intolerance." Kay answered with a sage nod. "And I still buy cheese and milkshakes sometimes."

"Even when it makes you sick?" Ruby asked.

"Ruby, if there was a really effective weapon against Grimm that had a lot of kickback, would you avoid using it?" Kay countered.

"That's like asking me to avoid Crescent Rose," Ruby answered. "I see what you mean, but that's a little dramatic if you ask me."

"Different strokes." Kay let the rest of the phrase hang in the air, Ruby understood without the other half. The little reaper perked up a bit as she remembered something Blake shared while they played another round of UNO.

"Is it true that I'm one of your favorite characters in the show?" Ruby asked, a small spark of excitement shone in her eyes. A high pitched squeal squeaked through her toothy grin.

"Yeah," Kay answered plainly, his attention returning to his work. "You and Weiss, among others."

"Oh, cool," Ruby replied fixing her hair, trying her best to seem nonchalant about this discussion. She was failing. "So uh, what about me made you one of my favorites?"

"Well," Kay began, before harshly mashing the backspace key a few times and restarting his next point on the student's draft. It was not a good one. "You and I are both young siblings, I related to that. I also felt pretty outta my depth when it came to college, or in your case, Beacon. I related to the struggle both you and Weiss had."

"Why are Neo and Winter also your favorites?" Ruby asked. She couldn't help but notice that Kay's typing slowed to a halt as he thought of an answer. "One of them tried to kill us and the other… well, not that I have anything against Weiss's sister but she isn't very interesting to me."

"Aesthetic." Was the response the man said after a while. A surprised cry from one of the girls in the living room caught their attention, though Ruby recovered quickly. She recognized it as Weiss's shrill voice. What did she find? Ruby shook her head to refocus on her current mission.

"S-so Kay," Ruby managed, her tone much more uncertain than before. "Um… oh! Roman talked about some holidays coming up. Which holidays are those?"

"Oh, right!" Ruby's question seemed to bring Kay back from the distraction. "Do you guys still celebrate Christmas and New Year on Remnant?"

"Christmas, not so much." Ruby remembered learning about the archaic holiday in Signal's civilian history studies classes. "But New Years is still very much a thing."

"Cool," Kay said. "Well, my family used to celebrate Christmas when I still lived with them. Ever since I moved out here I've just sent out gift cards to any of my old friends that I still talk to."

"That's… nice." Ruby replied politely. It really sounded rather sad. She could remember what Roman had told her earlier that day about Kay needing more friends.

"It's really not," Kay grumbled. "But I'm honestly pretty happy with the peaceful little life I've got here. Nothing to really drag me back home."

"Peaceful?" Ruby giggled. "There wasn't anything really peaceful about us coming here." Kay had to laugh at that. She glanced back at the office door as more noisy ruckus made itself known from the living room.

"I wonder what's going on out there," Kay asked no one in particular. He began to stand up and looked to Ruby. "You have any idea?"

"N-no!" Ruby stammered suspiciously. "None at all! So how about the uh…" She was never good at lying or stalling for time. "The weather?"

"The weather." Kay repeated, deadpan. Ruby did her best to disguise her uncertainty with a furious nod that did nothing for her case. "Right, I'm gonna go check out that noise."

"No wait, Kay don't!" Ruby rose quickly, too quickly in fact and stumbled a bit as Kay made his way to the door and opened it to find the rest of Team RWBY and JNR rummaging through a box in the living room. Oscar was looking at a familiar statuette before his gaze traced outward and met Kay's eyes. The little reaper sighed and face-palmed. "Drat."

"Oh hey guys," Kay said, causing all of them to freeze with whatever item they were interacting with. Weiss was playing with the Zwei plushie, holding as though it were the actual dog. Blake was inspecting an old figurine of herself. Nora was playing around with the figures of Jaune and Ren while Jaune looked up from the various posters they'd laid out on the floor. "Uh, whatcha doin'?

"Nothing," Nora was the only one to make an attempt at defending themselves, not that it helped them. Blake looked the most guilty, with her ears drooping as she lowered her figurine. Next to her, Yang appeared to be reading from the book the Faunus had borrowed earlier. "Absolutely nothing."

Oscar approached Kay from beside him with an amused expression as he held up a figure of Weiss and Ruby battling a Beowolf. "I gotta say man, this is kinda weird."

"Yeah," Jaune said, still looking at the various pieces artwork portraying Winter and Neo. "Tell me about it."


	6. Chapter 6

"Why do you have so many posters of Neo?" Jaune asked. "She wasn't exactly a nice person."

"And of my _sister_?" Weiss asked, pulling up one of them to show Kay like a mother holding up a prepubescent boy's secret stash of Playboy. However, instead of the figure in the design presenting themselves in a risque manner, the poster portrayed Winter Schnee in an action pose with her sabres poised for battle.

"They were my favorite characters?" Kay answered, unsure how to deal with the younger Schnee girl's cold gaze. "I mean, I just really like how they looked and fought in the show, so I took to liking them pretty easily.

"And none of me?" Yang looked offended at the lack of small blonde figures that weren't Yang.

"I gave a lot of my Yang merch to a little cousin," Kay explained. "She was a _huge_ fan of your character. So one of my birthday gifts to them was all of my Yang stuff."That answer seemed to satisfy the brawler before she tilted her head to get a better look at her younger sister. Ruby appeared from behind Kay and slowly trudged over to the rest of the group. Weiss joined the reaper's older sister in looking at Ruby with disappointment.

"You were supposed to keep him occupied while he went through the box," Yang reminded her, though there was no real heat behind it. "What happened?"

"Well I would have been fine if you guys just kept your mouths shut!" Ruby countered.

"She also started to run out of things to distract me with." Kay added.

"Hey!"

"Am I wrong?"

"N-no." Ruby deflated as she realized there was really nothing she could have done to prevent Kay from noticing the commotion. Her dejected expression was remedied as Kay made his way the box of memorabilia. When he returned to her, a small black figurine filled her vision. In the little plastic person's hands were a miniature Crescent Rose. The happy squeal seemed to alleviate any negativity from the girl as she excitedly tossed herself up in the air and caught it. She looked over the tiny version of herself with a giddy laugh. "Ooh! They even got the gears on Crescent Rose right! My baby!"

"That was effective." Yang said, nodding in approval. Kay shrugged in response.

"How come you only have _one_ figure of me?" Jaune asked.

"I wasn't exactly the biggest fan of your character in the show." Kay answered. Jaune opened his mouth to answer before reconsidering it, then nodded to show that he understood.

"That's fair," the swordsman said, smiling sheepishly as he scratched the back of his head. "I know I definitely wasn't the best person when I started Beacon."

"I'll say," Weiss mumbled, though a smile and playful eyeroll showed that she meant no harm.

"Granted, you were all children at the time." Ozpin commented, taking over Oscar for the moment.

"You definitely weren't my favorite," Kay said to the wizard. "I straight up despised you."

"Not without reason, I'm sure." Ozpin replied, nodding in understanding.

"Trust me, I don't dislike anyone without a reason." Kay assured him. The writer turned back to the rest of the group. "So what's with the decision to send Ruby to distract me?"

"It was Blake's idea!" Nora sold out her friend. The faunus in question tried to think of an explanation before pointing at Yang unashamed.

"I told Yang that you might have had merchandise of us!" Yang stood up, mouth agape at Blake's retort. "She told Ruby to distract you so we could search for the box in your closet!"

"Blake!" Yang complained. "You dirty little teacher's pet!"

"You know," Kay cut in loudly, catching everyone's attention. "You could have just _asked_ to see it."

"We thought you might have been embarrassed to show such fanaticism," Weiss replied. "Like Blake with her own books."

"You guys at least deserve to see how you're being portrayed," Kay countered. "Plus, they're from a long while ago. They're really just a bunch of toys and posters I used to have my room while I grew up."

"Well, I think a valuable lesson has been learned here," Ozpin said, standing by Kay's side. "I believe an apology is in order."

"Sorry Kay." The young men and women in his living room said in unison. They began to slowly rise and replace the items back in the box.

"Whoa," the single word from Kay froze the clean-up process. "I didn't say to put them away. You can still look at them." Speaking of looking through things, Kay looked at Blake. "Blake, where is the book I gave you?"

"Oh, she passed it around to me and Ozpin," Weiss explained. "Ruby read a bit of it too, though I must admit I was rather enthralled in the writing."

"Yeah yeah, you can suck up to Kay later." Yang interrupted, still annoyed at Blake's selling her out. She turned back to Kay with a smile and asked, "Any plans for dinner?"

"That's the other thing I wanted to talk about." Kay answered. "I can't just eat delivery every day while you guys are here. I have to cook something _somewhat_ healthy."

"So what does that mean?" Weiss asked.

"Ren," Kay got the young ninja's attention. "You're supposedly helping me keep the place in condition. How's the fridge situation looking?"

"Honestly, not very great." Ren answered. Last he had looked, the refrigerator had only a few eggs, a half-empty carton of orange juice, and some cheese left it in. No meats or veggies to speak of.

"That's right." Kay said. "It's time for a grocery run."

**. . . . .**

Ren, Yang, Jaune, and Ruby were into the passenger seats of the small sedan as Kay drove. Ren stared at the passing scenery from the front seat as music softly played. Well, however softly Kay's current choice in music could be played. Yang rocked her head to the beat of the metal that blared from the speakers by her feet. Ruby didn't seem to mind the music, though she was having trouble understanding what Jaune was talking about. She watched as Kay quickly lowered the volume on the radio.

Sorry Jaune," Kay said, replacing both hands on the steering wheel. "You were saying?"

"You said you got all of that stuff when you were younger," the blonde swordsman repeated his question. "How old are you now?"

"I'm 27," Kay answered. "I was in high school and college when RWBY had its run."

"What?" Ruby asked, distracted from her own mental musings.

"The show," Yang clarified. "Named after the team, not just you."

"Gotcha."

"So yeah, I was about 16 when I first started getting into the show." Kay finished answering.

"Cool." Was Jaune's simple response. More idle chatter filled the car for the rest of the ride until they reached a large store that read "Glen Plains Organic Market" in big, green block letters. The store was rather large, taking up an entire suburban block. The parking lot across the street was luckily rather sparse, allowing for quick parking.

"So what are we looking for, Kay?" Yang asked as Ruby ran over to get a nearby grocery cart.

"Gonna get a bunch of meats and vegetables," Kay listed off the top of his head. "Maybe some snacks if anything. Ren, any special requests?"

"A lot of pancake mix," Ren answered, remembering Nora. "Milk, orange juice, and more tea as well."

Kay led the group through the automatic sliding doors of the large grocery store. Kay immediately guided them through one of the aisles straight ahead of them. Ren and Jaune split from the group to retrieve two boxes of pancake mix and bottles of syrup, as well as other breakfast items. Meanwhile, the two sisters followed the older man in the meat aisle of the store.

"Been meaning to ask," Kay said, picking up several yellow packages of beef, pork, and chicken of varying cuts into the cart. Ruby looked up to him, waiting for him to continue. "You guys don't seem to have much of a culture shock so far. How different is my world from yours?"

"About the same," Yang answered for her. "Maybe similar in tech to the outer settlements."

"It definitely feels like life back on Patch," Ruby added. "Quiet and peaceful. You said you used to live in the city?"

"Yeah, down south from here," Kay replied. "Went there for college and moved up here to get away from it all."

"Get away from what?" Ruby asked, her innocent silver eyes peering into Kay's tired brown.

"Just… the busy bustle of the city." Kay shrugged, placing a third pack of chicken wings in the cart. Ruby continued to stare a Kay after his answer, as though she didn't believe him. Ren and Jaune rounded the corner with several boxes of cereal and pancake mix, as well as milk and tea packets. "Thanks guys. Let's get to the produce aisle." Kay took a backseat to it all as he let Ren take care of choosing the vegetable and fruit groceries. Ruby was quite upset at the amount of healthy vegetables they were choosing, but that was quickly sated as Kay let her take two packs of cookies on their way to checkout.

The rest of the evening was a rather calm affair as Kay cooked the first home-cooked meal for them since their arrival; fried chicken wings and sauteed spinach with rice. Looking around the house once more, Kay felt a feeling of warmth as the scene of the young friends watched the movie Ren had chosen that night, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon. Kay slowly made his way around, back to his office before returning to his work once more. Tomorrow was Saturday. It would be quite busy.

**. . . . .**

"Specialist Schnee Log Report Number Eight," Winter paced as she recorded yet another audio log to be saved and sent to Ironwood during her mission. The bags around her eyes were visible to anyone who passed her by in the last few days. She had been working tirelessly observing the extensive tests on Dust and Glyphs that may have sent her sister and her friends off. Tonight, however, she dictated with a renewed determination and a small smile. "Progress has been made. The recorded quantity of Burn, Spark, and the newly named, purple Grimmdark Dust combined with the force of a Gravity Glyph has resulted in the test subjects achieving left before imploding. The _living_ test subjects did not implode, rather they shot straight up before falling down to the same exact spot. Obviously, this didn't happen to our mission Hunters." Winter paused as she looked up to the pulsing statue of Salem and the broken Relics.

"There must be a connection with the light from the Relics." Winter muttered. "General, I understand that all contact with the frozen Salem is prohibited, but I _must _propose that I perform the experiment close to her. It may just give us a look into where Weiss and Ozpin went."

* * *

**Kariotic here! Sorry for the short update this time around, been kept busy by real life stuff. Will definitely try to make sure the next chapter(s) is filled with some exciting stuff. Should be fun. Hope you enjoyed reading!**


	7. Chapter 7

The house was empty again as Kay left for something he said was an important appointment. He cooked breakfast for the team consisting of bacon and over-easy eggs and hung out with them until early afternoon. He was kinda enough to order pizza for the crew before he left. Oscar, Weiss, Blake, Ruby were sat around the kitchen counter with a book in the middle. Ren and Nora listened in to their conversation from the sink, making the cleaning chore a lot easier and faster as Nora dried and placed the clean dishes and cutlery back in the cabinets. Yang and Jaune were playing some first person shooter together, playing the campaign of the game.

"So what did you think of the end of the story?" Weiss asked Blake, who took a moment to remember the part. Ruby grabbed the book and skimmed the blurb of the book; she wasn't interested in the story so much rather than the heroics and the actions scenes. She still read the whole thing, much to Yang's surprise; that sort of attention was usually saved for comics and weapon mods.

"It was definitely a painful ending," Blake answered. "He really suffered so much just to learn that the person leading the Academy had allowed all of that to happen."

"The way he characterized the Academy Principal sounded familiar," Ozpin mused aloud, having been the one out of the two souls in the body to have read the. "Like it was some allusion to Lionheart in a way."

"Kay did say it was originally a fanfiction of our show," Blake explained. "Perhaps his characters went to Haven in that iteration."

"I mean, it's called _A Safe Haven_," Ruby added, placing the book back down. "Seems pretty obvious."

"The use of individual special abilities is definitely relative to our Semblances." Weiss said, nodding. "I don't think I've ever heard of anyone who shared a name with these characters, either."

"So this world's Roman is simply a coincidence." Ren popped in from the sink area.

"It would appear so." Ozpin agreed, nodding. A loud cheer from the living room caused heads to turn momentarily as Yang and Jaune high-fived each other and continued with their gaming session.

"Back to the book on hand," Blake said. The group's collective attention returned from the distraction. "What was your favorite part?"

"I really liked the big tournament part." Ruby answered, much to the groups' expectations. "There were tons of tense moments both on the stage and behind the scenes.

"And the way the tournament rival character, Winry, was very interesting." Ozpin pointed out, alluding to his previous point. "Almost like he was describing Winter Schnee herself." Weiss nodded. The text described Winry as a young woman with white hair and blue eyes that attended a rival Academy in a country that lauded its military. It was obviously another Remnant reference a la the fanfiction aspect.

"Do you think he should have let the romance begin with Winry instead of Kiera?" Blake asked. "I felt there was a lot of emotional tension there because of the underplot."

"Oh _definitely_," Weiss responded another nod. "But I think that was more because of what Winry's company were doing to rig the tournament, taking those who won and sapping their energy after each round. Plus, Kiera had already settled into the relationship."

"Especially after the targets placed on their backs with that rather manipulative marketing they had when they got there." Blake added. "And it didn't help that Winry was aware of the rigging plot!"

"I really like Railen," Ruby popped in. "The hero who rises from the darkness, but relies on what he learned in the darkness to protect those he cares about."

"Definitely a complex character," Ozpin agreed. "He is much more brutally written than his teammates and friends."

"If he were a Huntsman, would you want him on our side?" Ruby asked.

"With his sense of loyalty?" Weiss asked. "Absolutely. He'd be a valuable ally."

"Railen would be just as dangerous as an enemy." Ozpin answered. "It seemed like he could've been a strong hand in the underground had he chosen to stay with his gang instead of taking the Academy's offer."

"The loss of his friends broke him," Blake recounted. "Kay really made each loss so emotionally and visually visceral." The group nodded collectively in agreement. Kay's story was less about the heroic actions of an underdog and more of a young survivor learning to grow outwards and find a new family in the Academy. The moments where Railen had watched helplessly as he lost some of his newly found family were soul-wrenching to say the least.

"Kris and Railen's fight was awesome!" Yang shouted her opinion from the living room, still playing with Jaune. She quickly pointed to the other blonde's side of the television screen. "On your right!"

"Got it!" Another cheer from the blondes sounded.

"I wonder how Kay's doing." Ruby wondered. She began to idly swing her legs on either side of her stool.

"He was pretty adamant that he go alone today." Blake replied. "We should respect that choice." /sp

"I know," Ruby whined. "But I'm so booooored!"

"You could join Yang and Jaune." Blake suggested, though Ruby shook her head automatically.

"I suck at shooters." Ruby pouted. "They're nothing like the real thing."

"You could always read more books," Weiss answered, gesturing towards the office. "There's plenty to choose from."

"Words." Ruby grumbled, face down into the counter top. Weiss sighed.

"There are a few visual novels." Blake offered. Ruby seemed to perk up at the idea. "Those are pretty action packed."

"Sure, I guess." Ruby got up to follow the Faunus to the office to find one.

"More tea, Ozpin?" Weiss asked the remaining member of the book club. The former headmaster nodded before picking up and looking through the book once more. Kay's story was quite faithful to the lifestyle of Remnant Academy students, despite the changes to certain concepts to avoid copyright issues. There was much passion put into the work. Perhaps there was something more to that?

**. . . . .**

"So, how was therapy?" Roman asked nonchalantly. A cigarette petered out smoke from between his fingers. Kay made sure he was upwind from his friend/editor as they walked slowly side-by-side.

"We talked about recent developments," Kay said, dragging his feet. He cherished these little hangout moments with Roman. They were both usually busy around this time of year. "Told her about the bit of stress that's been building since then. "Making sure everyone was accounted for and comfortable has been… taxing."

"How you feelin' now?" Roman asked after taking a pull from his cigarette. He made sure to lean away to exhale the smoke. "I mean, they're still there, aren't they?"

"Yeah," Kay nodded. "But it's starting to mellow out. Most of my work's still getting done. The kids are kept distracted for now. Despite the amount of food I have to buy nowadays, I'm actually doing decent. Looking forward to trying something fun for the holidays."

"Speaking of work," Roman insinuated. "How's the writing going?"/

"You'll be getting a few more pages later tomorrow," Kay answered. "Any problems so far?"

"Everything's pretty on par as far as I can see. The printing company's very receptive to the idea and love the early samples you gave me." Roman replied. A silence settled between the duo as they walked onto the street where Kay lived. The homeowner was glad the houses on his block were rather far apart, because the more excitable nights in this past week had been rather loud. Especially the one night he decided to establish dominance in Smash Brothers quickly. He was surprised how quickly Jaune and Yang picked up the game in the short time they'd been there, though it didn't help much when he took them to task with Chrom and Pikachu. The curly redhead broke the writer out of his reverie. "Quick question."

"Shoot." Kay answered simply as the two stopped right in front of his house.

"Why are you _really_ keeping them at your place?" Roman asked. "That's plenty of money among the eight of 'em to get several hotel rooms."

"Is it wrong to be kind to some friends?" Kay asked, avoiding eye contact. He appeared to be distracted by the distant sun setting. A cool winter breeze blew at his messy black hair. Another silence passed as Kay began to notice small snowflakes beginning to fall from the darkening sky. "Less money spent for them."

Roman took a deep breath. He didn't like taking advantage of his friend's easily distracted and vent-prone mind, but this was how he was going to get answers. He began, "They help out?"

"Yeah," Kay answered. "Cleaning, they come with grocery shopping."

"Blake likes your books?"

"Oh she loves 'em."

"Yang likes the games."

"Plays everyday."

"Nora?"

"Helps Ren with cleaning."

"They together?"

"Yup."

"Ruby?"

"Oh, she's- Wait." Kay pulled himself away from the distracting surroundings and realized what was going on. Roman grew giddy as he could just barely hear his friend mutter, "Ah, shit."

"Are those kids the same kids from the show?" Roman asked, his green eyes peered into Kay's brown, delving into his shoes.

"N-no." Kay managed. Roman's leaned in closely, forcing Kay to take a step back.

"Then why were they so shocked to see me?" Roman pressed. When Kay couldn't answer immediately, he pressed further. "Why was Ruby so scared to see me?"

"I… uh," Kay struggled more to come up with an answer. "M-maybe she-!"

"Nope!" Roman laughed out the word. "You _suck_ at lying on the spot. You always needed a whole damn story to make a decent fib, buddy!" The writer sighed, but didn't make any attempt to refute him. Damn Roman. He always had the quicker mouth between the two. That's why they teamed up years ago; Kay was the writer while Roman knew how to talk his way in and out of any situation. A look of realization came upon the editor's face. "Ruby thought I was Roman _Torchwick_! That's why she was horrified!" He gave a cheer as his assumptions were proven true by Kay's silence. "I _knew _something was way off when I first met them. You didn't even cover Weiss's hair and Blake's ears! Dude, you've totally got the RWBY kids in there!"

"Next time," Kay sighed and glared at his friend. "Give warning before you visit."

"Is that why you were so pissed at me for that?" Roman asked, incredulous. "Dude, I wouldn't even peep!"

"You yelling at me about this in public proves that entire sentence wrong." Kay pointed out, deadpan.

"Fuck that, no one's out here!" Roman threw his arms up and around them to show that they were truly alone. More wind built around them as played with their hair. "I loved that show as much as you did, man! I'd protect the hell outta those kids!"

"I know," Kay assured. "I just don't know if that was really necessary. Plus, the whole Roman thing really seemed to freak them out. I'm just keeping them here because this is where they landed after they somehow got transported here. Like, magically."

"What happened?" Roman asked in a much more subdued tone. He glanced back to the house, where he could already see Ruby peering out the window at them. "Be careful, Ruby's watching us."

"Long story short, they beat Salem, some crazy explosion happened, now they're here."

"Wow," was Roman's simply answer. "They beat Salem years ago in the show."

"Apparently they won in the same way the show had it," Kay asked. "And besides the much more PG-friendly skewed stuff in the animation, they confirmed that it was how it all went down."

"That's nuts, man." Roman said. "Shit, that's why you've been so stressed lately. You got a ton on your plate dude. At least you got Blake and Weiss to help you keep level." Kay looked back at the house to wave at Ruby, only for her silver eyes to widen immediately and move back in the house to get Weiss. Kay didn't see the rest of the exchange as he was brought back to the conversation by Roman's sudden stammering.

"S-s-Sn…" Roman sounded like he was shivering. "Sh-Sn..."

"Yes, Roman, it's snowing. You getting cold, buddy?"

"Sh-Schnee!" Roman exclaimed. Kay rolled his eyes.

"Yes, Weiss is also there. What's-!" Roman forcibly turned Kay by his shoulder to see a very real Winter Schnee, only for her fist to make solid contact with his face a second later.

"Oh shit!" Roman cried, looking back up at the armed Huntress that appeared out of nowhere.

"Torchwick? You fake your death _and_ are somehow involved for all this?" The Atlesian Specialist glared at the man cowering before her. Her light blue eyes glared with a fearsome coldness that rendered the editor speechless. Before the innocent civilian could even attempt to sputter his denial, her signature blade was viciously released from its sheath. "Tell me everything or you meet your real end here and _now_."

"Kay!" Weiss's voice distracted Winter momentarily, though she wouldn't dare remove her eyes from her target. She summoned a large white glyph behind Roman as she turned to her little sister, who slowed upon approach and looked upon the scene with unbelieving eyes. "Winter?"

"Weiss!" Winter lowered her sword ever so slightly. She recognized Ruby Rose and Jaune Arc as they emerged from the house with haste towards the scene."You're unharmed! I'm-!" Her jubilation was ignored as Weiss looked over the unconscious man and the unfortunate Torchwick-lookalike.

"Ruby, Jaune, get Kay onto the couch! Roman, you too." Weiss ordered. Before Winter could respond, Weiss turned back to her with an expression that mixed surprise and concern. The younger sister gently put a hand in front of Winter's sword, lowering it further. "Put that away and get inside before any neighbors check out the noise!" Unused to being the subject of her sister's orders and confused as to what just occurred, Winter felt obliged to follow them. Weiss looked to her elder sister with a stern countenance."We'll explain when we get inside."

**Several moments ago…**

"Miss Schnee, are you sure?" The lead scientist in the lab had carefully but quickly placed the specially crafted Dust explosive several paces away from the statue of Salem. The pulse of light from the shattered Relics traveled from the fallen Grimm Queen's head to the ground, moving along the surface of the Grimmlands for a few meters.

"These are exactly the conditions that existed at the moment of the incident," Winter nodded, not really listening to the scientist. The bags under her eyes were much more pronounced, a testament to how much rest was lost in the pursuit for answers. "I will be applying a mid-level gravity glyph similar to the ones Weiss is able to conjure. It should also be somewhat easy to replicate via Dust and machine experiments.

"One last time, Specialist Schnee." A deeper voice brought her attention back to the observers of the experiment. Ironwood stood at the front of the group, looking at Winter with a concerned expression. She had been working towards this "solution" of hers for the last month. While he was proud that one of his most loyal, trusted, soldiers was dedicated to their working and saving others, the way she had thrown herself into the investigation was clearly unhealthy. He made sure to look directly into Winter's eyes as he asked her, "Are you sure about this?"

"Absolutely, General." Winter answered immediately. All this time spent mining enough Grimm-Dust for all of the experiments until they found the right quantity to result in the closest imploding pressure that happened during the original explosion. The added intense inward pull from the gravity glyph exponentially strengthened the implosion to the point of what the scientists could only liken to a small-scale singularity. "There's no other way to test if this works or not."

"And you'd go alone?" Ironwood asked.

"Better to lose one in the pursuit rather than lose more with conviction." Winter replied coldly to her superior before turning to the scientists. "Let's begin."

She stepped into the observation tank that contained Salem and the Relics, stopping right in front of the Dust bomb replica. Shards of Burn and Lightning stuck out from the cohesive agent, glinting in the afternoon sun. The former SDC heiress took a deep breath as she began to form the gravity glyph. Too strong of a concentrated fractal and there only be an explosion, too little and nothing would happen. Weiss was still learning to develop her glyphs and would have only been able to quickly conjure up a mid-level strength Gravity glyph. The dark circle grew beneath her, pulling in particles in the air. She poured more concentration into the stability and strength of the glyph, causing the bomb to be pulled in slowly. She was standing right where the pulse of light from the stature began to diminish, the same as Weiss and her friends had.

"Detonate!" Her order was answered with a loud ringing noise, before she was pulled in, pushed outward, then pulled inward once more intensely. She felt her insides lurch as the gravity itself seemed to invert and revert itself several times before the world righted itself and her senses recovered... only to hear her sister's name uttered from the mouth of an impossibly familiar redheaded, green-eyed man. The Valean criminal that had been killed in the fall of Beacon Academy was alive? And somehow involved with the disappearance of Teams RWBY, JNR, and Ozpin? Her limbs moved instinctively as she lunged forward, catching Torchwick's accomplice square in the face and successful incapacitating him. She would have done the same with the Dust thief had Weiss not burst out from a nearby house to stop her and protect the suspects she stumbled upon! What the hell was going on?

Kay was still unconscious as everyone had settled in the living room. Winter was still surprised at how casual everyone was acting within the house, though a feeling of calm came over her as she realized they were under no distress. Roman was ushered onto a stool dragged from the kitchen as Winter stood in the middle of the living room.

"What is the meaning of this, Weiss?" She demanded. "Are you harboring these two criminals?"

"Criminals?" Yang repeated, incredulous. "What? No!"/

"Then explain him!" The Specialist pointed at Roman and a collective wince echoed through the room at what was an unfortunate coincidence that came back to bite them.

"His name is Roman James." Ruby said, remembering their first meeting. "He's a friend and coworker of Kay. Our _friend_ who you knocked out."

"Also the man who owns the house." Ren added from the kitchen, preparing mugs of tea for Roman and Kay when we woke up. Winter looked to the shaken redhead with distrust and to the unconscious man with apprehension. A familiar young man entered the corner of her vision and she turned to face Oscar.

"Miss Schnee," Ozpin spoke with a serious tone. "I believe an explanation is in order."

**. . . . .**

Kay woke up with a massive headache and the image of a Winter Schnee sitting on her knees in front of him . Her sharp blue eyes met his own the moment he blinked to clear his vision. The early winter night had appeared to have settled in the house. It was much quieter than he expected.

"Ah," Winter exclaimed softly. "You're awake." She wasn't alone as Kay could see Oscar approach him from the kitchen.

"How are you feeling?" Ozpin asked as he made his way over to the couch and handed the homeowner a mug of tea and a small white pill. "It's everyday a civilian takes a blow from a fully trained Huntress and lives."

"I truly am sorry about that, of course." Winter's apology sounded as sincere as it could be, veiled behind her naturally militaristic tone. "Ozpin and the others explained the situation to me while you recovered."

"Thanks for that, Oz." Kay said, popping the pill in his mouth and downing it with tea. He took a deep breath before turning to Winter. "So how are you holding up?"

"Should you be the one asking that question?" The Specialist retorted.

"I'm no stranger to getting punched in the face." Kay countered. "You're in a completely different world from Remnant. Can't imagine how jarring that might be."

"It is… difficult to understand the vast differences between yours and mine, yes." Winter admitted. The lack of specificity made Kay wonder if the group had truly told Winter everything. There was a pause before Winter's eyes locked back onto Kay's. "I believe thanks are in order."

"For punching me?" Kay joked, though he cringed when he realized his jest seemed to fall short. It was apparent that the woman did not appear to be in a joking mood.

"For taking in my sister and her friends, not to mention Ozpin." She clarified. "He told me that this world is capable of cruelty and injustices as much as Remnant, even without the existence of Grimm and magic. They were lucky to have stumbled upon such a generous soul as yours."

"Thank you." Kay replied, not breaking eye contact. He felt it would be rude if he didn't keep it up. "Where are the kids?"

"We sent them off to sleep." Ozpin answered. Before Kay could ask another question, Ozpin continued. "Roman's fine, we sent him on his way as well."

"I'll have to check on him later." Kay noted that, adding it to his mental to-do list. He took another sip of tea as he turned back to Winter. "I'm assuming you though he was Torchwick."

"Yes," Winter answered flatly. "The resemblance was very close and the fact that he knew m sister's name added to my negative reaction."

"So how did you get here?" Kay asked the question on everyone's minds. She had told everyone before already, but Winter felt he also needed to know.

"We made countless experiments to replicate the conditions that led to everyone being transported here. It took until this most recent attempt for us to consider using the bomb replica, my gravity glyph, and the light from the Relics." Winter recounted. "And here I am."

"And what about a way back?" Kay asked, eyebrow raised. It stayed raised as it took the Specialist a moment before responding.

"Now that the experiment is successful, there will be more attempts to create a reverse effect." She explained. "It may take a while, but I have faith that it will happen posthaste."

"So what you're saying is that you rushed your way over to this side without a confirmed way back." Kay's point caused Winter wince in realization.

"That is… an accurate statement." She muttered. Kay sighed as he rubbed his eyes.

"At least you went bulk grocery shopping yesterday." Ozpin offered. Kay laughed lightly, much to Winter's surprise. "Kay's been a very gracious host while we've been stuck here."

"I do what I can," The writer replied dismissively before looking around and coming to a conclusive thought. "Would you be okay with sleeping on the couch?"

"Is that not your bed for the time being?" Winter asked. "I understand the teams take up the two bedrooms in the house."

"I can live with sleeping on the floor for a while." Kay said. "It helps that you said that there's a way back in progress, so it hopefully isn't for too long."

"I hope so as well," Winter agreed, letting out an exasperated sigh. "I worked for an entire month until we had were able to have the right conditions for the experiment to work."

"M-month?" Ozpin repeated. His hazel eyes went wide as a green glow signified the switch between souls. Oscar emerged with a yawn and a small smile in greeting to Winter.

"I'm guessing he went inside to think it over." Kay speculated. Oscar nodded before yawning again. "Go ahead and get to bed. Let me know if you need anything to help you knockout while he goes crazy." Another nod from the boy, though he did not resist the order to go sleep.

"Why is that so shocking?" Winter asked. "We had to run dozens of tests and did so as quickly as efficiency and effectively would allow."

"It's only been a week's time here." Kay answered. "They've landed in my living room Sunday morning."

"I see." Came Winter's curt answer. Another awkward silence fell between them. A quick glance at the clock behind them told Kay that it was already a quarter to 10. "I owe you thanks again for being a kind host, I suppose."

"It's nothing," Kay sighed. He rose to his feet and stretched his arms up and behind him in a swinging motion. He hoped he didn't look too creepy as he looked the Specialist up and down to gauge her sizes. "I'll go get you some clothes to sleep in."

"I'll be fine with this, sir." Winter stood to match Kay.

"You aren't one of my students, don't call me sir." He said, completely serious. "And I'd rather you'd be comfortable, if anything, while you're staying here. We could go buy more clothes for you tomorrow, if that's alright with you."

"As if I have anything else to do tomorrow." She shrugged.

"Gimme a second." Kay walked over to the room that JNR and Oscar occupied to find that they were still awake and idle chatting among themselves. They stopped once they realized who walked through the door.

"Hey Kay!" Nora greeted. All four of them were seated in a small circle on the bed as some sort of card game was taking place. "Whatcha need?

"Got any eights?" Jaune asked.

"Go fish." Ren responded, much to Jaune's exasperation

"Just gonna get some stuff from the closet real quick." Kay answered. He made his way into the closet, which was filled with hangers carrying brown, blue, green, and pink clothes. He pushed them aside to reach a small cabinet in the back of the closet, retrieving white v-neck tees, a pair of light blue sweatpants, white socks, and jeans for tomorrow. "Pajamas and some clothes for Winter."

"How're you feeling?" Ren asked as Jaune asked Oscar for threes to no avail.

"I'm good." Kay assured as he exited the closet. "I can take a few hits."

"If anything," Ren began. "Taking a punch from Winter Schnee is pretty impressive."

"Thank you for the weird compliment, Ren." Kay rolled his eyes, but smiled. He wished the teens a good night and rejoined Winter in the living room, handing her the bundle of clothes. "The shirts are the same, it won't matter which one you where now or tomorrow. I'll get new sheets for you and me. You can get changed in the bathroom in either bedroom."

He walked over to the small linen closet in the living room and gathered a couple pillows and three blankets; two for his spot on the floor and one for Winter on the couch. He turned and was graced with a half-naked Winter Schnee putting on the sweatpants he gave.

If he were drinking something, the spit take would have given him away.

He spun on his heel and faced the closet again to give her privacy. He looked at the laundry machines in the linen closet and wondered if it was about time for him to do laundry now. He mentally shuddered at the thought of the potential load. Maybe he could get Ren to help him out with all the clothes. Is this what having a big family was like?

"You can turn around now." Winter spoke up and Kay followed her suggestion to see that the t-shirt and sweatpants fit almost perfectly. The shirt was snug, though Kay made a point not to stare for too long. "You didn't have to do that."

"I felt it would have been creepy to just stand there and wait for you to change," Kay replied. "Though a little warning would have been nice." His concern was waved off. _Must be an army thing_, he thought. _Like changing rooms after gym._

"I must admit you were right to assume I'd rather sleep in comfortable clothes." Winter relaxed with a stretch and sat on the couch. "If I may trouble you for a while more, I have some questions."

"Seeing as I got ahead on sleep, I could stay up for a little while." Kay justified as he walked over and placed the sheets on the arm of the couch.

"I would hope so." A curious look came upon Winter's face. "I'd very much like to get to know the man who has been watching over my sister and her friends." That confused Kay. What did she mean by that?

"You don't trust me?"

"No."

"Ah." Of course. It's not like she would just accept that he had only known the group for a week and it seemed pretty suspicious that he was just so set on helping a bunch of strangers with such a ridiculous situation so easily. He could see how one might think he head ulterior motives. Kinda.

"I'm known as an effective and thorough interrogator." Winter crossed her arms. "I will know if you lie to me."

This should be a fun night.

* * *

**Oof. Don't meet your heroes, kids.**

**Heyo, Kariotic here with another update. And surprise, it's the longest chapter yet! With this chapter, I confidently say that we are roughly around halfway through the story. I say that with minimum confidence because it's tough to gauge when you're writing each chapter off the top of the head. Either way, I hope you enjoy! Please feel free to leave reactions and what you think might happen in the reviews. It would definitely help me build the story up more. Thanks for reading, and see you next update!**


	8. Chapter 8

The living room was quiet as Winter peered into Kay's eyes in an attempt to intimidate him. Kay, the sleep-deprived idiot he was, merely felt slightly awkward and waited for her to make her move. Kay had changed into a black tee and gray sweatpants for pajamas and also brewed extra tea for the two of them.

"Your full name and occupation, please." Winter's first question was pretty straight forward.

"Karis Grey," The man answered. "Though I much prefer to go by Kay. I am an English teacher and a writer."

"Do you have a criminal record?"

"No." Kay responded, slightly offended. "At least, none that I've been made aware of."

"Are you a user of recreational drugs?"

"Tried weed a few times," he admitted. Those rare times he did try it, he didn't know there was marijuana in the food until his friend told him afterwards. "Not really my thing. I stay away from alcohol unless it's a big social event."

"Weed?" Winter repeated with a raised eyebrow. Kay was inwardly baffled by her reaction at first, but quickly remembered where she was from.

"A plant-based drug, known officially as marijuana or cannabis, that can be smoked or ingested in foods through mixing in extracted oils." He explained to the best of his ability. Roman knew a bit more than him, being the adventurous one in the duo.

"I see." Winter nodded in understanding. "Do you have ties to this world's armed forces?"

"Yes, several." Kay's answer seemed to surprise her, but she made no attempt to interrupt him. "My mother was in the army. Little sis's in West Point right now. I used to be in the Reserves."

"Used to be?" Winter asked. She looked the man up and down for a moment for any physical injuries that would warrant the response. Her eyes met his once more as she found none.

"I suffer from BPD." Kay clarified. The answer was always an uncomfortable one for those who ask the reason why he was discharged, though Winter did her best not to let it show. There were plenty of acquaintances that suffered from mental illnesses, particularly Huntsmen and Huntresses with PTSD after difficult missions. "I was actually coming back from a therapy session when you punched me and made Roman piss his pants."

"And how are you right now?" The soft volume of the question took Kay by surprise. Winter seemed to relax slightly after his answer, as though being pushy would hurt him.

"I'm fine." Kay shrugged. He looked over at the door to his master bedroom, where Team RWBY slept. "I mean, the _nine_ additional people living with me for an undetermined amount of time has been stressful more on my wallet than anything, but you showing up here helps me relax."

"Is that so?"

"You mentioned that Atlas should already working on a way back now that you successfully transported yourself over here." Kay said. "That means it shouldn't be long until you can all get home."

"Hm." Winter hummed as she continued to stare into Kay's eyes. Kay did his best not to crumble under her gaze. No big deal, right? Just a calm night between the two of them, staring into each other's eyes. No inner-teenager Kay, this is not the time to start anything, you stay quiet, young man!

"How many people know where you live?" What an odd question.

"Roman knows." Kay counted on his hand. "Maybe my sister, I gave her my address just in case she needed anything. And my ex. That's about it."

"Ex?" A single slender eyebrow raised, though he couldn't place why. He nodded in response. "Would there be any reason for your former partner to, say, return here angrily and demand to be let in?"

"Doubt it." Winter could hear a bit of venom that was spit out with Kay's immediate answer. He followed it up with a shrug. "I'm not gonna talk about it if you're about to ask me to elaborate."

"That's fine." She replied. "I'm not so cold that I'd be so rude to the one hosting my sister and I."

"Good." I let the silence around us hang for a bit before a thought came to mind. "You said you were told about how Roman and I were aware of your existence prior to your arrival."

"That was my next question," Winter nodded. "How does that come to be? Your technology does not show any signs of any advancement beyond Atlesian standards."

"Thanks."

"So you knowing about our existence is definitely suspicious without proper context." She finished, ignoring my quip. "Do you have any proper explanation for that?"

"That depends," Kay reached for the remote on the couch's arm. "How sleepy are you?"

"I've been leading the investigation behind my sister and her friends' disappearance with as little as minutes of sleep," Winter answered with a raised eyebrow. Kay remained nonplussed; we've all pulled all-nighters in college, nobody's impressed with people bragging about staying up late. "I can stand a long winded explanation."

"Less an explanation," he clarified as light flooded the room as the Rooster Teeth logo appeared on the television screen once more. "And more of a demonstration. Are you ready?"

Winter nodded.

"Please, proceed."

**. . . . .**

"Weiss."

"Yes, Ruby."

"Did Kay and Winter stay up all night watching TV?" Ruby asked her partner.

"It would seem so." Weiss sipped at a cup of tea as she looked over her sister and their host still sleeping in the living room, with Kay knocked out on the floor next to the couch.

"Should we wake them?" Yang popped in with a bowl of cereal in hand. Jaune, Nora, and Ren were sat with their own bowls in the kitchen. Blake and Oscar were already situated in their usual perches in Kay's office. Weiss shook her head.

"They both probably need it." Weiss answered as she finished her tea. Being the first one awake, she noticed that Kay had apparently shown Winter all of the animated series that told their story. Perhaps she asked how he and Roman knew about them? Weiss sighed. It was Sunday, and if she remembered correctly, Kay had nothing scheduled for today.

"I was going to ask if we could watch another movie today." Yang complained. "I guess we can ask about it later."

"Psst!" Someone's calling hiss caused caused the three girls to turn, only to see Oscar beckoning to them from the office. "Get over here!"

Ruby, Weiss, and Yang entered Kay's office to find that Blake was sitting behind the desk with Oscar standing over her shoulder. The farm boy beckoned them to come closer again, which the trio did.

"What is this?" Ruby asked. Her eyes were glued to the laptop screen as she tried to absorb the information on it.

"Some version of the CCT's Dustnet forum, it looks like." Weiss answered. Blake nodded.

"Kay mentioned that if I ever needed to know something immediately that he couldn't answer, Ozpin or I could use his computer." The Faunus said, scrolling down a page showing images of familiar looking people.

"Is this forum about… _us_?" Yang asked. A particular image caught her eye and she took the mouse in her control.

"Hey!"

"There we go!" Yang ignored Blake's protests and scrolled back up to a very well drawn image of her in a dynamic action pose. A fiery vignette surrounding the scene of her punching towards the screen. "That's freaking cool!"

"There's one of me!" Ruby shoved her older aside and scrolled down to the next post, which showed a drawing of a silhouette of her and a looming Crescent Rose in front of the Remnant moon. The little reaper squealed at the sight. "That's. So. _AWESOME_! They got my baby's design down to a tee!"

"Vanity doesn't fit you very well, Ruby." Weiss tutted.

"There's one of you here too, Weiss."

"Show me." The heiress's attention was on the screen as Ruby scrolled down to reveal Weiss in a Dust casting stance: one hand wielding Myternaster and a small ball of fire focused in front of her other hand. "Impressive."

"Impressive?" Ruby repeated. "That's gotta be the best thing she's ever seen!"

"It isn't that difficult to impress me, Ruby," Weiss ignored the sideways look Yang gave her. "I can always appreciate well-made artwork."

"Let's keep scrolling." Yang suggested.

"Or," Blake elongated the word for dramatic effect as she clicked onto another tab she had opened prior. It had a blue header bar and plenty of text below it. "We could check out the stories people made about us."

"Stories?" Weiss asked.

"Fanfiction," Blake clarified. "Fake stories written for fun, based on existing works. Like the show we apparently came from. Kay already told me about the ones he used to write."

"Oooh, sounds scandalous." Yang leaned in as she looked through the numerous titles under their show's category.

"That looks like an interesting story." Ruby pointed at one specific story, and thus began their journey down the rabbit hole of RWBY fanfiction.

**. . . . .**

Kay left the group of four girls huddled together on the floor, visibly shaken by whatever they had seen on his laptop. Oh, he had found them, alright. He and Winter woke up right before noon and heard quite the commotion coming from the office. Ren, Nora, and Jaune were working on lunch in the kitchen in the meantime, as they remained well away from the shenanigans of Team RWBY.

The two adults were in the car on the way to the same Old Navy Kay had brought the kids to earlier that week. The ride itself was a quiet affair as Kay let Winter observe the passing landscape as the others have.

"So," Kay broke the silence. He glanced over as Winter's attention shifted to him. "I never got to hear your thoughts on what I showed you last night."

"I admit, it is… a lot to process." Winter answered. We watched the entire _RWBY_ series to completion in one night. "That I, along with everyone else I know, exist only as fictional characters for your entertainment."

"If you put it that way, you make it sound like I'm at fault." Kay said.

"I don't mean to, but the situation is bizarre nonetheless." Winter continued. "I'm not… real to the people in your reality."

"And yet, you're here." Kay noted aloud. "And you're very real."

"I'm not about to have a philosophical conversation about my existence right now, Karis." Winter deadpanned.

"Please just call me Kay." The driver pleaded as he pulled into the strip mall parking lot. "I haven't had anyone call me my proper name in years."

"Then I hope you simply call me Winter." She replied in kind.

"I don't think I would have called you anything else, honestly." Kay parked and turned off the car. He nodded to let her know they could exit. "Not like I'm gonna call you Miss Schnee."

"You're neither an Atlesian soldier nor an employee of the SDC." She added. "You have no reason to. I appreciate the informality at times."

Winter copied Kay's movements and walked behind him into the Old Navy before taking the lead towards the women's department of the large clothing store. Kay easily helped pick up a few simple shirts and sweaters for the cold season. He let Winter choose the bottoms and underwear she would need for the undetermined future. It wasn't long until the backseats of Kay's car held several bags of women's clothing and undergarments.

"Kay," Winter's voice brought the man's attention away from his phone. "Do you have any female care products in your home?"

"Female care products?" The wording confused Kay at first before a realization came to mind. "Oh shit. I have six women living in my home without pads or tampons."

"You're lucky none of them are synced up, Kay." Winter pointed out the obvious.

"Let's pop into the Walgreens then." Kay's stomach growled loudly. Winter didn't appear to seem embarrassed when hers echoed the sentiment. "Then get some lunch before we leave."

"What about for those at home?" Winter asked.

"I always leave some cash and a pizza delivery number for them if I think I'm going to be out late." Kay answered. "They'll be fine."

"I see."

After dropping off the clothes and other supplies into the car, Winter and Kay made their way to a small restaurant. It took a moment for Kay to push in the door; even Winter admitted it was rather heavy upon her successful attempt of getting them inside. The lunch rush had evidently happened, as it was rather busy and noisy. A waiter that looked to be in his late teens greeted them and sat them with menus.

"Have you been here before?" Winter asked as she glanced through the menu. Her blue eyes quickly analyzed section before staying on a certain area for a bit.

"Not for a long while." Kay answered. "I only ever suggest this place when I'm with someone. Usually Roman in his free time."

"How long have you been writing?" Winter asked. "I understand you have quite a few works published. Weiss and Blake told me."

"Of course those two told you." Kay rolled my eyes. "They're often in my office while I work, reading through my library."

"From what I also heard," Winter leaned in with an amused look. "You also used our story, _RWBY_, to make one of your own."

"I made sure to alter it well enough to be considered rather original." The writer assured. "The characters were always mine, I just had to change the setting and other minor aspects. Why, planning on suing me?"

"No, I was just thinking how stories like that don't exist in Remnant." Winter said, before turning to a young woman who approached them.

"A-ah hello and welcome to Il Casa Roma," the familiar voice caused Kay to look up from the menu immediately and see Christie. "Can I take your order?"

"Oh hello, Christie." Kay greeted. The young waitress seemed to relax a bit upon realizing who she was waiting on.

"Hi, Mr. Grey." The student reciprocated with a shy smile as she held up her notepad. "What'll you be having?"

The two adults ordered and allowed Christie to take their menus; they ordered two different pasta entrees and water. Christie quickly jotted down the order and departed with another shy smile. Winter noticed as Kay watched the young girl continue her rounds.

"You know this girl?" Winter followed his gaze as the waitress nervously handed orders over to at the kitchen window.

"One of my students." Kay answered. "She seems to be doing well."

"Do you happen to make close connections with your students?" Winter asked with an eyebrow raised. Another server placed two glasses of water on their table as Kay told her about the younger girl's struggles in class. More idle conversation and safe questions passed over the table until their entrees arrived. The lunch continued silently until they left the restaurant. At the door upon exit, Kay turned back to say something to Winter when - _**BAM!**_

Whoever was entering the restaurant must have accidentally pushed the door while struggling to get in like Kay and Winter did. Winter could hear as Christie gasped and made her way to the scene to help her get Kay to his feet. There was much to be concerned about, seeing as he had just recovered from getting punched in the face the evening prior.

"Oh, I'm so sor-!" The young redheaded woman that caused the damage stopped in her tracks at the sight of Kay struggling to rise. Her bright green eyes' gaze went from the man to off to the side. "Oh, hey Kay."

"Ow," Kay greeted back with a less than subtle glare. "Hey, Leah."

Winter could help stepping back as an awkward atmosphere settled upon the small scene. She had forgotten the waitress had arrived as well, as she was surprised when Christie whimpered beside her.

"O-oh no."

* * *

**Heyo, Kariotic here!**

**Sorry for the delay on the updates, as well as the short chapter, the story had to take a backseat while real life decided to hit me with a few choice jabs. I've been working on it bit by bit, don't worry. I'm still having fun writing TiPL. **

**Comments? Suggestions? Anything else? Feel free to leave some words in the reviews! **

**Thanks for reading as always. See y'all next update!**


	9. Chapter 9

"What are you reading, Ruby?" Weiss asked, peering over her leader's shoulder. The brunette looked up to her partner and smiled.

"Blake recommended this manga to me," she explained. "So far, it's pretty interesting." Weiss looked over at the two other people occupying Kay's office. Blake sat in the other arm chair opposite Ruby, busy reading her own selection from the library. Oscar sat in Kay's chair, perusing the computer. A part of her wondered if it were Ozpin using it instead to find a way to occupy his time. As per usual, Yang, Jaune, and Nora were occupied by the television while Ren finished cleaning up in the kitchen.

"It's about a girl who suffers from having a split personality disorder." Ruby continued. "Imagine if one of them is as innocent and childish as I was starting Beacon, then the other is pretty much Yang."

"Those are pretty accurate comparisons." Blake added in without even lifting her eyes away from her material

"But the Ruby-personality of this girl has no idea that the Yang-side is solving all her problems." Ruby finished.

"I'm surprised to see you so compelled by anything other than comics and weapons," Weiss nodded, looking to the library wall. "You must be truly bored."

"Nah," Ruby shook her head. "I mean, kinda. But not really. We have to stay inside. It's not like I have any reason to go outside. No Grimm, no Salem, no bad guys."

"True." Weiss had to give her that one.

"Why so concerned, Miss Schnee?" Ozpin asked from the computer. "There really is no need for us to leave the house."

"Don't mind me, sir." Weiss waved dismissively. "I'm just going a little stir-crazy just sitting here everyday."

"I assume many of you would be," the headmaster nodded in understanding. "To be sent to a relatively peaceful region immediately after a time filled with combat and anxiety. I, at least, have tea to help the nerves. It's not coffee, but it'll do for now." The headmaster's joke got a few soft chuckles from the girls.

"I suppose Kay is returning to work tomorrow, so I could join him again." Weiss said. She turned to Blake and Ruby. "What about you?"

"I'm content with reading through the library in our time here." Blake answered.

"Besides, you heard Kay, right?" Ruby piped in. "Winter's being here means there's progress in getting us back home.

**Meanwhile…**

A lone soldier stood beside the imposing figure of General Ironwood as scientists scrambled around the research center in the Grimmlands. It had been half a week since Winter had disappeared.

"Sir," the soldier broke the awkward silence between the two of them. "How do we mimic the powers of a Schnee glyph if we have no one on our side to do so?"

Ironwood let out an exasperated sigh as his metal hand met his face.

"I don't know."

**Back on Earth…**

"Are you alright, Kay?" Winter asked from the passenger seat of the car.

"Yep."

"You don't sound it."

"..."

"I won't pry if you don't want to talk about it," The Specialist said. "But only if you say you don't want to."

"I'm fine." Kay answered. "Just a little angry from getting popped in the face for the second time in twenty four fucking hours."

"Was it the girl?" Winter recalled her name. "Leah?"

A dangerous game. The two elder siblings shared a knowing glance that this was the only way to properly calm down like a mature adult. Kay sighed as he turned the car left.

"Yes," came the simple answer. "My ex."

"I see." Winter replied just as curtly. "And the man she came in with?"

"The man she cheated on my with while I went down to the city."

An uncomfortable silence filled the car. Winter had her share of crushes and admirers in her Academy years, but never a full relationship like most of her much more outgoing acquaintances. She was much more focused on the objectives at hand, like missions and the army. She didn't know how to relate or add to this conversation. She simply linked her hands and circled her thumbs idly while Kay continued.

"I came back early from a holiday trip to Manhattan a few years back and wanted to surprise her with a gift I made while I spent time with my family." Kay explained. He took a deep breath before dealing the blow. "I found her banging the new guy on my sofa when I got in quietly in an attempt to surprise her."

"Was it the same man we saw today?"

"The very same."

"Hm." His reaction to the people entering the restaurant seemed quite was a detail in what occurred there that seemed off, however. "How is your student aware of the issue? She seemed to know exactly what happened."

"Glen Plains is a small town," Kay said. "Her dad's on the local police force. I'm sure plenty of my former neighbors heard the noise that night."

"Yelling?"

"Fighting." He corrected. "I broke his nose and a couple ribs. He didn't press charges. Smartest fucking choice of his life, I guess."

"You fought him." Winter repeated. "You were military trained, weren't you?"

"Yeah, but all that 'discipline' goes out the window when you're white-hot, pissed off." Kay glanced to Winter shrug but nod subtly in agreement. The rest of the ride went quiet until they reached home. "Sorry."

"For what?" Winter asked.

"Laying all that on you."

"But I asked you to."

"You're not my therapist."

"You don't spend enough time with other adults." Winter's point made him look directly at her. Her cold blue eyes stared into his brown with determination. "Your friend Roman has his own life and your therapist is only available so often. And now you've had a stressful week making sure a bunch of adolescent Hunters are safe in a new world. This event would have been the tipping point for anyone else."

"Anyone else?" He repeated.

"You have a lot of practice keeping your thoughts and feelings in." Winter replied. Her eye contact never wavered. "Ozpin told me your early written work hints towards your struggles."

Kay sighed, breaking away and looking forward at the house. He looked up when Winter placed a hand on his shoulder.

"If you need to talk, you have Ozpin and me." Winter offered with a soft smile. "If you don't feel like having a child unavoidably listening in on your problems, I am willing to talk."

"Are you trained for that?" Kay asked.

"I may come off as cold and callous, but I do have friends who confide in me." Winter said, removing her hand from his shoulder. "I hope that, in the short time we remain here, that I can be that friend to you."

"You don't have to." Kay finally unbuckled his belt.

"I don't mind paying my metaphorical rent this way." Winter followed suit, rolling her eyes. "I expect that it took you time to come to terms with finding a therapist."

"Years."

"Exactly."

"How often do you go out and spend leisure time?" Winter asked as they existed and got out of the car.

"Almost never." Kay said immediately. He retrieved the purchased clothes and toiletries from the backseat of the car. "I prefer staying indoors. Catching up on sleep, writing, or just entertaining myself."

"I see."

"Are you two done flirting yet or are you gonna get in the house any time soon?" Yang's voice made them both jump, but Kay was quickly ready with a retort.

"Almost done, yeah." Kay's quip caused Yang to stutter with how quickly and nonchalantly he responded. Winter simply seemed amused at the blonde's reaction. "Ya mind taking in these bags? I gotta say something first."

"Sure," Yang took the bags from Kay's arms and held his gaze until she entered the house, leaving the door ajar for the two adults.

"Winter?" Kay looked back to the elder Schnee daughter.

"Yes, Kay?"

"Thank you." He said with an open mouthed smile. "I may take you up on your offer one day."

"Of course." His sincerity seemed to relax her. It wasn't until they noticed the small audience of Yang, Nora, Jaune, and Ren peeking from the door. Winter sighed. "We should get inside now."

"Hey guys!" Kay greeted the teens as they finally stepped into his home. "Anything interesting happen?"

"Not really." Ren answered.

"What about you?" Nora pointed right at the red mark on Kay's forehead.

"I had a disagreement with a door." Kay answered.

"Was it an oak door?"

"Probably."

"Those oaken _bastards!_" /span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-he

Winter removed her jacket and then herself from the moment. She gathered the bags holding her new clothes before making her way to Kay's bedroom to change. She didn't hesitate to throw out the clothes Kay had given her the night prior before changing into a simple white tee and sweatpants. She would rejoin the group for a rowdy dinner, glancing at their host throughout the night.

He didn't seem to fake a single smile or laugh that night.

**. . . . .**

Winter looked around the lobby of the school as Kay asked the receptionist for guest passes. She looked back to see Oscar, Blake, and Weiss talking behind them. Miss Belladonna wore a beanie to cover her ears. The five of them were bundled up as the winter weather had struck mid-drive. /

"Your entourage grows, Grey." Lucy noted aloud as she passed the teacher the sticker passes for the Remnant citizens. The receptionist's eyes traced over Winter briefly. "Ma'am, do you have any form of ID I can see?"

"What for?" Kay asked.

"Prospective students and family members are given a free pass," Lucy nodded at Oscar, Weiss, and Blake. "She's an adult woman that isn't registered as an auditor or a teacher. Suspect indeed."

"You're surprisingly sharp for 2 o'clock in the afternoon." Kay remarked.

"Good security gets me paid." Lucy countered before flinching as Winter produced a non-specific badge and ID. "Oh, I see. Understood, ma'am."

"Thank you." Winter said simply as she placed her ID in her pocket.

"What did you do to deserve the Fed's eye?" Lucy asked Kay, wide-eyed.

"Well," Kay looked to Winter, who simply looked back at him expectantly with a raised eyebrow. "Maybe the government has need of my services?"

"_Castle_ was just a TV show, Kay." Lucy joked.

"Just remember to thank me when I save the world, Luce." Kay retorted as he led the group towards his classroom.

"You ain't doing shit, bookworm!" Lucy's laugh echoed as the young teacher rolled his eyes.

"Quite an interesting friendship you have there." Winter remarked.

"She was never a morning person." Kay said.

"It's 2 PM." Weiss clarified.

"She was never a morning person." Kay repeated, as though it answered everything. "Oz, you remember where the library is?"

"I'd like to join him today, if that's alright." Blake spoke up this time. Kay nodded and waved them off as they reached the door to his first class. The Faunus girl looked to Ozpin and said, "I wanted to explore the civil rights histories of this world as well."

"Oh, you'll find quite a lot of stuff about that." Kay said as he unlocked his classroom. "Ask Miss Valerie to borrow the computer. If she asks, tell her you're with me and Oscar. If you need to distract her for any reason, ask her what she thinks about my writing."

"She's a fan?" Blake asked.

"There's a local book club in town," Kay answered. "She's the leader and had the group read some of my books. It's flattering, really."

"E-excuse me," A new voice entered the conversation as Christie walked up. "Mr. Grey!"

"Yes Christie, I saw your second draft." Kay answered, waving off Oz and Blake as they made their way upstairs. "I'll talk to you about it after class."

Christie passed in front of Winter with an apprehensive look before entering the classroom. Winter and Weiss made their way to the back left corner of the classroom. The younger Schnee pulled out a book from Kay's library while Winter watched as Kay prepared for his class. The man pulled out a small book, a water bottle, and then his laptop. He opened his laptop and began typing before turning and beginning to write on the whiteboard.

"What exactly is your lesson today, Kay?" Winter asked. The young teacher answered back without turning around or stopping.

"Components for a good final draft essay." Was the simple answer. Winter nodded as he wrote out the question, 'What makes a good final draft?' "And I would appreciate it if you call me Mr. Grey when class begins."

After several minutes, the class began to fill up. At first, there was the normal amount of trivial conversation and volume that filled the room. That was until several students began to notice Winter in the corner of the classroom, and the room's conversations grew silent.

"As y'all can see, I'm being observed today. If you're also in my poetry workshop class, you will be seeing them again later today." Kay addressed the class with a sort of lax authority, Winter noticed. It was like the younger Lieutenants training a platoon or recruits on a weekend. "So let me begin by saying that I have, indeed, seen the drafts of everyone that sent them this past weekend. You should have received feedback and suggestions. Whether or not you decide to act upon those suggestions is up to you; it's the feedback you should take seriously."

The rest of class went without issue, as Kay made a mock essay assignment for the class to work on together. Winter caught Christie glancing back at her several times during the lesson. Perhaps she still recognized her from the incident at the restaurant?

Time went on as the class came to an end. Kay casually dismissed the students with a reminder to submit their final papers that friday night.

"Christie, "Kay's words stopped the timid girl in her tracks. The student made her way to the young teacher. "Relax, you're not in trouble for anything. I was actually about to give you your grade for your second draft."

"O-oh," Christie let out a sigh of relief as Kay retrieved a paper from his bag. Winter could make out some pen marks on it, notations for corrections. "Thank you."

"You've almost got it down with this one," Kay said. "If you simply submitted this on Friday, I'd give you a solid B. However, if you take into account my notes and take some time to find one last article to support your argument, I think you'd easily make it an A-grade paper.

"Thank you, Mr. Grey!" Christie thanked the man once more before leaving the class.

"That was kind of you," Winter noted. "Most professors at Atlas would have simply left them to their own devices."

"I'm not most professors." Kay responded with an earnest smile."Shall move onto my next class?"

"Lead the way."

Winter simply listened as Kay held, instructed, and dismissed his second and final class, the Poetry Workshop class. It was a much smaller class than the first, and was held in what appeared to be a meeting room. Blake had actually found her way into the classroom during the middle of the lesson with a few books she had borrowed from the library.

"Valerie let you take those?" Kay asked Blake after the final student left.

"She said you would be held accountable if they're overdue." Blake shrugged.

"I expected nothing less, really." Kay nodded before turning to Winter. "So, what did you think of my day-to-day?"

"It is rather interesting," Winter answered. "You pay close attention to your students' work and individual situations. May I ask why that is?"

"Because someone needs to." Kay answered easily. "Also, for content."

"Content?" Blake repeated.

"I get a lot of inspiration from my surroundings," was the man's response. "So listening to as many people's stories is definitely helpful for brainstorming ideas."

"Resourceful." Winter noted.

"Of course, I ask for their permission before writing out their stories." Kay finished. "It's only fair. So, dinner?"

The crew reunited in the lobby, revealing that Weiss and Ozpin also decided to borrow some books from the college library. Small talk ensued in the car as Kay pulled into a Five Guys parking lot. The five of them got out of the car and entered the fast-food restaurant, which was rather empty despite being the start of the dinner rush. Blake perked up as a bell rang as they entered. As they approached the register, Kay smiled apologetically at the cashier.

"Might wanna give your team a heads up," Kay warned. "This is gonna be a bit of an order."

The young man behind the register simply raised an eyebrow as the teacher/writer began reciting his order. The cashier's eyebrow went down immediately as the order did, indeed, end up being rather large. At the end of it all, Kay had ordered 20 burgers, 10 orders of fries, and 10 milkshakes. Winter stood by Kay the entire time while the kids went off to take a seat.

The bell rang behind the two of them, signifying that another customer had walked in. Kay and Winter walked away and joined the others at one of the boots. Kay looked to see who else was in the restaurant; a total of four people: a middle-aged couple and two diners sitting independently. Winter's attention suddenly shot towards the cashier

"SHUT UP, AND GIVE ME YOUR MONEY!" A rough voice cut through the peaceful atmosphere as two men with black balaclavas stood at the register. The one who had shouted had a pistol pointed at the cashier while the other had a large knife in his hands. The shouter's voice carried through the room, turning everyone's attention towards them. "Just do what I say, and no one gets hurt1"

"What are you looking at?" The knife wielding robber met Kay's eyes and took a step forward before noticing his company. "Eyes down, motherfucker, or your family gets hurt!"

Kay sighed through his nose but did as he was told. Winter, who sat opposite of him, simply held the intruder's gaze. She watched as the armed robber continued to step towards them. Kay felt Blake tense up next to him. Oscar took a deep breath as the seconds passed by.

"Pal, you better control your wife unless she wants me to make an example outta her." came the man's threat.

Kay's brown eyes met Winter's blue. A single one of her thin, black eyebrows rose in amusement. Next to her, Weiss rolled her shoulders in preparation; Kay sighed once more. They may have been unarmed, but they were still experienced fighters with a secret defense.

"Just… no Semblances." Kay shrugged. Winter nodded.

"I said-!" The knife hit the floor with a single strike from the Atlesian Specialist before she even left her seat. He must have thought it to be an intelligent decision to throw a straight punch at her. "Fuck you! Auugh!"

"How uncivilized." Winter smirked at Kay, who looked at the unfortunate man writing under her boots with a dislocated arm. She raised her leg and delivered a simple kick to the face, knocking him out. Seeing that the gunman was still occupied at the register, Winter calmly strode over to the register. "Excuse me, sir."

"H-huh?" The gunman was shocked as Winter easily pushed him aside, ignoring the gun in his hands. "The fuck?"

"Young man," Winter addressed the cashier, who was still occasionally glancing at the first intruder. "I would hope your employer has already called the authorities."

The cashier nodded frantically, pointing towards camera above him that was watching the register.

"Bitch, you chose the wrong damn day to play hero!" Winter turned in preparation to receive a blow when another person seemed to appear out of nowhere.

"Sorry, I wasn't gonna just stand there and let you do that." Kay held back the gunman's chambered haymaker, giving Winter enough time to painfully disarm him.

"Agh!" The criminal crumpled to the floor holding his wrist. Kay quickly kicked the dropped gun in the direction of Weiss and Blake. "Fuck you!"

It wasn't long until the restaurant's population now included four cops that were taking in the scene. The two injured criminals were carefully taken away. One of the cops approached Kay with an outstretched hand while his partner took the kicked gun and put it into a plastic bag.

"Mr. Grey!" The office greeted and shook the writer's hand. "Good to see you came out of this mess in one piece."

"My friend here knows her shit," Kay nodded at Winter, who had already given her statement along with the cashier. "How's your family, Captain?"

"Christie's been working non-stop on her paper, if that's what you mean." The officer laughed before reining in his professionalism. "Is there anything important you wish to add to this scene that may not have been said before?"

"None, sir." Kay answered. "Thank you for your time."

"Thank you for yours, Grey." The police captain nodded and turned to leave.

**. . . . .**

"That's it?" Yang asked, as the gang finished eating dinner. "That's kinda… boring. Intense for civilians, but more boring on the Huntress end."

"It wasn't exactly the most common occurrence," Kay admitted. "That might have gone very differently if we weren't there."

"What's the protocol for that sort of thing anyway?" Jaune asked. "For the workers, I mean."

"Just let it happen." Kay shrugged. "Your employer's money is not worth your life. Follow the directions, and hopefully, you get out unharmed."

"I find it kinda funny that the guy thought you were all a family." Nora said, pointing to the group involved. "You definitely pass as one."

"He called Winter his wife," Oscar recalled. "That was pretty awkward."

"It didn't bother me." Winter said earnestly.

"Nor me," Kay added. "Whatever helped to catch him off guard."

"You did catch that other guy's punch." Yang complimented.

"I caught it before he even threw it." Kay responded dismissively. "I moved behind him when Winter got in front of him and managed to distract him."

"Either way," Ozpin cut in, taking over for Oscar. "I believe that should be enough for excitement for one time. From now on, we should limit the amount of people going out at one time."

"What?" RWBY and JNR protested simultaneously. Kay and Winter, on the other hand, seemed to agree.

"Imagine if one of us is caught alone or lagging behind." Ozpin said. "We have no communication between us and being scattered would be too dangerous. At the most, we should be going out at four at a time. Is that understood?"

"Mmrbl…" Was the general consensus.

"Is that _understood_?" The former headmaster's voice repeated with authority. The youths nodded and departed from the kitchen to resume whatever shenanigans they were involved in before dinner arrived.

"Thank you again, Kay." Winter turned to the writer as he finished his strawberry milkshake. "Your assistance today was very much appreciated."

""Of course." He said. "It would be remiss of me not to protect my guests."

"Even if we have Aura?" As soon as she asked that, a weird thought came to mind.

"Even so." Kay assured before yawning. "I'm gonna get more work done in the office. Help yourself to anything in the house."

Winter watched him walk away before walking over to the sink, where discarded cutlery was sent after dinner. Out of the pile, she retrieved the kitchen knife used to cut some of the burgers earlier. "They were in a different world, right? Their Lien, their Scrolls, and their ways of life were essentially voided here. Their _existence_ was voided here. Winter gasped suddenly as she came to a realization.

"Winter?" Ozpin asked, approaching her. "Are you alright?"

"Ozpin," Winter refused to turn to him. "Have any of the children encountered any combat here?"

"Not that I know of," Ozpin answered. "Why?"

Winter finally, slowly turned toward him and revealed the small bloody cut she had made on her palm. In front of her hand, a small glyph came to life, before fading away. A soft light shone around her hand as her Aura began to heal the cut. Ozpin's eyes widened as the healing process was impossibly slower than normal, even with Winter focusing all of her Aura in her palm.

"Our Aura is… compromised."

* * *

**Heyo, Kariotic here! Sorry for such a long wait. Life hit me hard with a lot of things, more bad than good, unfortunately. That's not including the whole pandemic thing going right now. So stay safe out there and take care of yourselves! **

**Hope you enjoyed this chapter. Thanks for reading!**

**Man... 2020 sucks balls, dude.**


	10. Chapter 10

**Heyo Kariotic here!**

**So uh... yeah. World's on fire. I can't do much but try to write as much as possible while I have all this free time on my hands.**

**Love each other. Stay safe out there.**

**Enjoy the read! See you next chapter!**

* * *

"We're going where?" Ozpin asked, incredulous. The three still awake adults stood in the kitchen one evening after the students had gone to bed. The two men drank tea as Winter was absorbed with a certain book. "After you agreed to restrict the amount of people leaving the house?"

"I said we _might_ go to the city," Kay repeated his point. "It's not a solid plan. Besides, I had already thought of it way before you started restricting numbers last week."

A week. A whole week since Ozpin and Winter learned that their Aura had been compromised and was beginning to weaken. The only functioning theory they have is that the longer they stay away from the world of Remnant, the sooner they may lose their Aura completely. Time was of the essence. Another week spent here meant another _month_ had passed in Remnant without any signs of progress. The immortal wizard looked over at Winter, who was reading through one of the geographical reference books borrowed from Kay's personal library. The two's eyes met returning back to their respective businesses. The Specialist requested the book to understand the world and local region they lived in after their host suggested the trip south. The Headmaster took a sip of his tea. Neither had made any attempt to tell Kay about the recent Aura development; he had enough on his plate as it was.

"It's literally an hour drive down, and we can drive back up once it starts getting dark!" Kay assured them.

"Are you concerned for nightfall?" Winter asked. "Is the city that dangerous?"

"Nighttime is when the area I want to show you guys gets the most foot traffic." Kay answered. "At least in the daytime, we can see each other and the sights clearly."

"And the occasion?" Ozpin asked.

"Change of scenery since it's a holiday," their host answered with a shrug. "I've got some time off with the semester ending, so I could take you guys down there for a quick sightseeing trip."

"While I agree it would be a nice trip for the children," Ozpin sighed. "We barely have enough chaperones, between the two of you."

"Do you not count?" Winter asked, her eyes still scanning her book.

"I could barely look over Jaune's shoulders, let alone keep an eye on a troupe of Beacon students." Ozpin countered.

"We do have a third adult to chaperone," Kay said, catching both Hunter's attention. "Roman."

"Your…" Winter recalled the man in question. "Friend."

"Friend, editor," Kay listed off. "Atlesian Specalist's fencing target."

Ozpin delivered the greatest spit take Kay had ever seen in his life, causing the writer to laugh heartily at the sight before passing the poor man a paper towel. Winter simply scowled at Kay as she finally closed the book and slid it over to him.

"Are we going back to your school anytime in the coming weeks?" Winter asked. "I noticed you didn't go out for work yesterday."

"Finals week," Kay's simple answer got a sympathetic nod from Ozpin, but a raised eyebrow from Winter. "Depending on the class, students will either simply submit their final assignments online or go on campus to take physical exams. My classes only require online submissions, so I don't really need to leave my house to do my work. I go over submissions, email them back to the students with my last remarks to them, and submit their final grades to the system from the comfort of my office."

"Convenient." Winter noted. "We only ever took exams over computer monitors our academy's labs."

"All of the exams and final presentations are done in-class at Beacon," Ozpin added. "But I know the local civilian colleges do have similar models to yours."

"You know," Kay leaned onto the kitchen counter. "For a seemingly futuristic world of technology and magic, your system feels very archaic."

"If it isn't broken, as they say." Ozpin dismissed.

"Progress and change are the ways of nature." Winter and Kay were surprised to hear their comment repeated simultaneously. Kay simply saluted with a slight raise of his tea mug. Winter continued, "As Hunters and soldiers, we must be aware of how society changes and learn to accommodate appropriately."

"Back to the matter on hand," Kay said. "Roman, who is also aware of who you are, is someone I trust."

"How does he know who we are?" Winter asked.

"He slipped it out of me." Kay admitted. "Also, it doesn't help that he easily recognized the person who terrified him by looks and voice."

"He was also a fan?" Ozpin asked.

"We watched the show together through high school and college," Kay answered. "It's one of the reasons we got close in the first place. Again, I would trust him to help me keep y'all safe."

"We would need to meet him properly first." Ozpin suggested. "All of us."

"That can be arranged." Kay nodded with a sly smirk.

**The next evening...**

"Kay!" The unassuming redhead cheered as Kay opened the door to his home the next afternoon. "What's with the sudden invitation, buddy? Is it work related?"

"Kind of," Kay's nonspecific answer didn't seem to trouble Roman. "Just follow me."

Roman followed Kay inside, taking off his shoes after crossing the threshold into the writer's home. He looked around to see Teams RWBY and JNR chatting animatedly on the couch as Yang and Jaune played some FPS game on the television. Oscar and Winter were sat in the kitchen, the latter of which was idly watching the gameplay with an eyebrow raised.

"They have this sort of game in this world?" Winter asked no one in particular. "Where one pretends to be a soldier in wartime?"

"It would seem so," the voice of Ozpin came from the young farmer's mouth. "Though research shows there is no correlation between these games and actual soldier activity."

"Hm," Winter nodded before realizing the new person in the room. "Ah, you actually called him."

"Of course," Kay pulled his best friend forward to face the Specialist. "Roman, meet Winter and Ozpin."

"M-meet?" Roman;s green eyes switched rapidly between Kay, Winter, and Ozpin. "Like, meet-meet or interrogate?"

"Just meet," Winter answered, rising from her seat and offering her hand to shake. "I would like to apologize for what happened when we first met."

"Why are you apologizing to me?" Roman asked before pointing to Kay. "He's the one that got punched."

"What he's trying to say," Kay butt in. "Is that he understands why you reacted in the way you did, Winter."

"Y-yeah, totally!" Roman nodded enthusiastically. "I look a lot like one of Remnant's most notorious criminals. It makes sense that you'd act like that. I hold no grudge."

"That is good to hear, Mr. James." Ozpin said with a soft smile.

"If calling me by my first name still makes you uncomfortable," Roman said. "I have no problem going by simply James."

"We may not have to do that," Kay muttered as Ruby walked over to the kitchen and noticed their guest.

"Hi Roman!" The reaper greeted with a smile. At the sound of the greeting, the rest of the youth echoed the greeting with a wave or other callout. None of it seemed forced, which surprised the editor. "Whatcha doin' here?"

"Kay asked me over here for some reason."

"Need something, Rubes?" Kay asked. Ruby pointed to a bag of chips on the counter, which the host easily slid over to the girl. She took it happily back to the group. "So back to the matter on hand…"

"Why did you call me over, Kay?" Roman asked. "Is it about your writing?"

"No," he answered. "We just needed a third adult chaperone."

"Chaperone?" Roman repeated. "You planning some sort of trip?"

"Down to the city," Kay nodded. "To see the sights."

"Oh, nice!" The redhead smiled. "Perfect timing. And I suppose Ozpin wouldn't be a great chaperone being stuck in Oscar's body."

"Correct," was the Headmaster's simple answer. "We asked you here to get to know you better. Kay trusts you; we would like to think we can trust you as well."

"How do we go about that?" Roman asked.

"Hey!" Kay's voice caught the attention of the teens in the living room. "Roman's here! Didn't y'all wanna bother him about the show?"

"Wait wha-!" The poor editor was immediately swarmed by the teens as they asked their rapid-fire questions.

Kay watched on, amused, as his friend was besieged by the youths asking their questions about what he thought of them and the show. Roman did his best to bounce between questions. His green eyes kept glancing over to him, asking for help, but to no avail as Kay simply let the horde reign for the moment.

"Who is your favorite character?" Blake asked calmly. She was still holding Kay's fanfiction-turned original story in her hands, obviously still enjoying it despite reading it over several times now.

"I-I would say," Roman's eyes scanned the group as he tried to make an unoffensive answer. "Ruby!"

"Yay, me!" The leading protagonist cheered at Roman's answer, raising the bag of chips above her head and causing some to spill out.

"Ruby!" Ren scolded her and began to clean up the mess. His cries for calm were ignored until Winter approached the group.

"Children, I believe you're overwhelming him." The Specialist's presence and authority made the group calm down and step back instantly. She turned back to their host. "Kay, I'm disappointed that you would be this petty."

"Hey, he's the one that forced the truth outta me," Kay shrugged with a smug smile. "Thought I'd just torment him a bit."

"Rude." Roman stuck a tongue at his friend. "So when's the trip?"

"Trip?" The word was repeated among the students. Kay and Ozpin simultaneously lowered their heads into their palms while Winter simply sighed.

"We were going to introduce the idea during dinner," Ozpin said. "But I suppose we could bring it up now since the cat's out of the bag."

"I was planning on taking a group trip down the city," Kay declared to the group. "It's a special time of the year and I wanted to give y'all a change of scenery for once."

"Oooh!" Nora's eyes shone brightly at the idea. "That sounds AMAZING!"

"When do we leave?" Jaune asked, his blue eyes wide with excitement.

"In a few days," Kay answered. "Since we needed another chaperone to keep an eye on all of you, I decided to bring Roman in to help."

"Why not tomorrow?" Ruby asked.

"Forecast calls for rain tomorrow," Kay took out his phone and showed them the weather app. "Plus, I gotta submit the rest of my classes' grades by then to finish up work for this semester."

"What now then?" Roman asked.

"We can talk shop," Kay shrugged. "Then the kids can torment you again during dinner."

That night, Roman had happily treated the gang to Chipotle. Kay, ever the fan of the place, was happy to stay silent and enjoy his food while Roman was interrogated by the kids.

"So," Nora fought through the food in her mouth. Kay chuckled at the sight of Ren moving to scold her before resigning himself to finishing his own meal. "How'd you guys meet?"

"We met in high school," Roman answered. He elbowed Kay's arm, earning him a scowl as the latter dropped some food from his spoon from the blow. "Saw this guy reading alone in the corner during detention."

"Detention?" Oscar repeated. Ozpin decided to let the young man join the socializing this time. "You, Kay?"

"I never claimed to be a saint." Kay shrugged.

"Anyway," Roman regained his audience's attention. "I saw that he was reading the RWBY manga, and realized he was also a fan. I asked him about it and we hit it off."

"He annoyed me about it every week at detention." Kay corrected.

"Every week?" Weiss piped in, sipping her soda.

"I was a good student, I swear." Kay defended. "I did nothing wrong."

"You would cut class to read your books and write in the library." Roman reminded him.

"Class was boring." Kay snarked. "Plus, I ended up passing and graduating."

"You did," Roman nodded. "Somehow."

"My grades were better than yours, too."

"Hey!"

Ruby giggled as the two threw friendly banter at each other about their pasts. From what she gathered, Kay was the quiet loner kid that just wanted to coast along and do what he liked, while Roman was the outspoken, energetic kid who enjoyed people's company. It reminded her a lot of Blake and Yang's personalities.

"So how did you both end up moving up here?" Weiss asked.

"Honestly," Roman began. "I followed Kay up here. I work remotely for my company, whose HQ is in the city. I still go down there once in a while for important meetings. Since he was assigned to me as a writer, I thought it would be easier to just live somewhat close to him for work purposes."

"Do you only edit for Kay?" Blake asked, pushing her empty platter away.

"I have a few more clients, but Kay is the most active." he answered. "Working online helps with being an editor. My assistants back in the city also help a lot."

"Indeed." Kay nodded.

"When did you first publish something, Kay?" Winter asked.

"I published my poetry book after graduating college." Kay answered. Similar questions about the two friends continued as the crew finished dinner. Kay and Ren cleaned up the mess left behind as Ozpin took control once more and let them return to their games.

"We leave in two days, then." Ozpin said.

"So you're fine with it?" Kay asked.

"You're right to say that it would be a nice break from the monotony of our current environment," Ozpin began. He quickly turned to their host. "No offense."

"None taken."

"And we now have a trusted third pair of eyes to help keep track of the students." Ozpin said. "Roman, do you have a vehicle that can hold enough of us?"

"My car fits four," Kay answered for Roman. "Roman's SUV is big enough to fit the other six."

"Do you live alone, Roman?" Ozpin asked. The editor nodded. "And you own a family car?"

"Hand-me-down," Roman shrugged. "It's still reliable for being a few years old. It's survived your move, Kay."

"Then it's settled," Ozpin announced. "The trip happens for the good of the students."

"For the good of the students!" Kay cheered, raising his fist with a smile.

"Before I leave, I need to talk to Kay." Roman turned to his friend. Kay nodded and led him into his office, closing the door behind them.

"How long are you willing to keep this up?" Roman asked, his normally cheerfully aloof demeanor had gone. "You're losing money everyday to keep them fed. You might even be spending more daily than a regular family!"

"I'm well aware of that," Kay retorted. "Winter being here means progress is being made, Roman. If she was able to get here afterwards then there is a chance of people on the other side building a way for them to return home!"

"So you're just playing a waiting game," Roman concluded. Seeing Kay nod, the redhead sighed. "I'm just concerned dude, what if they get hurt? I saw that story at the Five Guys last week."

"That's why Ozpin restricted the amount of people leaving the house at a time," Kay reasoned. "And now he's trusting _you_ to join us and help keep them safe while we're in the city."

"Hmph," Roman wiped his face with his hand. "I wanna keep them safe, too."

"I know you do." Kay nodded. "I don't know anyone else who'd be willing to help me through this sorta thing."

"Who else would believe you?" Roman laughed, breaking the serious atmosphere between them. "Oh, the fictional characters from my favorite show are now real and they need me to protect them until they get home. Real psych ward type shit, Kay."

"Exactly." Kay said. "I dunno if this was luck or fate. Who knows what could've happened if they landed anywhere else?"

"Do you believe in destiny?" Roman teased.

"Fuck off," Kay's final statement was accompanied with a middle finger.


	11. Chapter 11

"Ooooh," Nora admired the scenery as it passed them by. "Ahhh!"

"Nora, it's been nothing but trees for the last half hour," Ren pointed out.

"Naaaaature," Nora crooned, causing her partner to simply facepalm. Kay looked back at them through the rearview mirror with a small smirk. It had been a while since he had been on a road trip, even a short one. Glen Plains to Manhattan was a little more than an hour's drive, so it wouldn't be too boring. The only annoying part of the trip would be finding parking in Manhattan, especially since they'd be going to a specifically busy part of the city.

"You used to live in the city, Kay?" Oscar asked from the front passenger seat. Jaune was already knocked out in the seat behind him.

"I lived close to Manhattan," Kay corrected. "I went to school in Queens then went to college in Manhattan, the city."

"So is Manhattan a different city than New York City?" Oscar asked.

"No, Manhattan is the city part of New York City." Kay clarified. "New York City consists of five boroughs: Queens, Brooklyn, the Bronx, Staten Island, and Manhattan. The first four boroughs are mostly suburban while Manhattan serves as the big commercial hub with a bunch of tourist spots and business buildings."

"So Manhattan," Oscar attempted to understand. "Is a city borough, but is only a part of New York City?"

"I know it's a little confusing, but that's the gist of it." Kay said. "I can't exactly explain why they made it that way, but it's how it works."

"Where are the boroughs in relation to each other?" Oscar asked.

"Let's put Brooklyn in the middle," Kay began. "On it's easter border is Queens, the largest borough. Across a river to the west is Manhattan, a long island surrounded by two rivers. To the southwest of Manhattan is Staten Island, which should definitely be more associated with New Jersey, another state. To the immediate north of Manhattan is the Bronx, which ends up being the threshold between New York City and Upstate New York."

"Why is it called Upstate past that area if we're still technically located south of Glen Plains?" Oscar asked.

"Oscar," Kay sighed. "Is Ozpin asking these questions?"

"Yes."

"Oz, let the boy rest." Kay chided. "The concept is confusing enough as a resident of this place, let alone an interdimensional visitor."

"Thank you."

"You're welcome."

"Ooooh," Nora crooned again. Kay let out a heavy sigh before turning on some music.

In the other car, Roman drove a large SUV that held Team RWBY and Winter, the latter of which sat in the front seat. The Specialist was used to uneventful travel; the Atlesian landscape is only so breathtaking so many times. Snow, snow, maybe a few mountains, more snow, you get the deal. The teenagers behind them were not so tranquil.

"I spy with my little eye something green!" Said the reaper from the middle row.

"For the last time, Ruby," Weiss, sat behind the team leader, pinched her nose in slight annoyance. "There is nothing but _trees_, most of which aren't even covered by snow. _What else could be green?_"

"The grass." Blake answered monotonously from next to her as she read through her favorite of Kay's stories for the tenth time in their stay.

"Correct!" Ruby cheered, ignoring Weiss completely.

Yang rolled her eyes as she played on the portable console Kay lent her. It was some sort of dungeon crawler game that consumed her attention completely. She growled as she died again and lowered the screen to look ahead at the road. The blonde looked around to Ruby next to her, who was looking out her window for something new to play "I Spy" with.

"So," Roman began. "How's living with Kay been for you?"

"Are you asking me?" Winter had not been paying attention, though her normally professional aloofness wouldn't let that show. Roman nodded, refusing to remove his eyes from the road. "He's been courteous enough to let everyone take his beds and couch. He's spent his own money to clothe and feed us. I doubt I'd be alone in saying that we owe him quite a lot for his kindness."

"No signs of bitterness or grouchiness?" Roman's surprised tone caused Winter to look to the editor. "That'sgood."

"He told me about his past relationship," Winter admitted. "Is that why you're so surprised he's not so bothered?"

"He's always been rather… off ever since then." Roman answered. "He'll go to work and be the teacher that the students love, interact with faculty with a golden heart, then go home and do nothing but sulk and stare at his laptop for hours into the night."

"Has he lashed out before?" Winter asked, giving him her full attention.

"No," Roman said. "Well, not at others at least."

"What do you mean?" This time Yang spoke up, her game completely forgotten. Roman's eyes widened in shock, as though he forgot the others in the back. The girls went silent to listen, the games and book now gone with any sense of fun sucked by Roman's statement. The redhead sighed.

"So, you know he goes out every Saturday or so for a couple hours, right?" Roman began. The girls nodded. Winter simply listened, already knowing Kay's story. "He goes to therapy every week to deal with his mental illness, known as Borderline Personality Disorder."

"What is that exactly?" Weiss asked.

"BPD, as it's known, is a complicated mental disorder that affects relationships, habits, and the way one thinks. Kay's suffered from depression and anxiety since high school, and it's definitely affected how he sees himself."

"Sees… himself?" Blake repeated.

"You read his poems, right Blake?" The Faunus nodded in response to Roman's question. "What does he see himself as?"

"He… detests himself," Blake recalled from the poetry book in Kay's office. The one he said was one of his earliest published works. "He doesn't see himself as anything truly worthwhile, or feel happy, and does his best to distract himself with jokes and little things that make him feel good even for a little bit."

"That's why he's leaned into writing so much." Roman finished for her. "His family pressured him to attend West Point, one of this world's most prominent military schools. For as much as he worked his ass off, he was absolutely miserable and his BPD began to grow more and more prevalent. After a medical check, he was released and his family essentially disowned him for it."

"Because he was kicked out?" Yang asked.

"Because he was weak." Roman corrected. "At least, that's what his family saw him as. So he ran. He ran north from home and landed in Glen Plains. Far enough away from both West Point and New York City. I followed him to make sure he'd be okay, and for a while, he was."

"He was hired by the local college and apparently found love. I was ecstatic for him!" He continued. "He worked well for a whole 2 years before things went to shit for him."

"When the girl cheated on him." Winter said, remembering Kay's story. The girls behind them gasped. "His ex-girlfriend."

"Correct," Roman nodded grimly. "I rushed over there when the police called me as his emergency contact. It was the only time I had ever seen Kay mad at anyone, let alone violent. Sure he kicked the guy's ass and tossed his ex out of the house but that was somehow the simplest part of it all. After that, he would come to my place and just lay awake for hours. I would do my best to look after him and keep him entertained, but he was just inconsolable."

"Because he was cheated on?" Weiss asked. Her fists were in tight balls on her lap. It was an uncomfortable conversation, but it felt like a necessary one to have.

"Because he felt he deserved it." Roman said, shaking his head. "He felt he wasn't good enough, and that he was just so much of a failure that he kept blaming himself for his issues. His relationships with his now-ex, with his family, and even his early exit from West Point."

"But that wasn't his fault!" Yang cut in. "He needed help and the world just didn't throw him a bone!"

"I think deep down he knows that," Roman agreed. "That's why he didn't hesitate when I recommended a local clinical psychologist. He's been going weekly and taking meds ever since then."

"Medicine?" Winter could vaguely recall Kay standing at an open cabinet for a few minutes, taking what she thought to be normal vitamin supplements, a trivial routine she'd witnessed several times already. "I see."

"Which is why I was so concerned when you guys popped into his life," Roman's words were met with a chorus of "hey" and "why" in offense. Roman chuckled, breaking the serious atmosphere a little. "Not because you're bad people, we know you're all lovely. It's not a secret his spending is strained literally _tenfold_ since you've arrived. I almost expected him to explode when he first met me after your coming here. Instead he seems…"

"Content." Winter finished. "He seems none too bothered."

"It's the same reason why he loves writing and teaching about writing," Roman said. "It keeps him busy and it's related to something he enjoys. He loved your show and would use it as inspiration for a lot of his works. So y'all are both a blessing and curse."

"Is that why you told me you were glad to see us when we first met?" Ruby asked. "You said he needed new friends?"

"Yup!" Roman said, smiling. "I know the financial problem is only temporary while you're stuck here, so I can only see your presence here as a positive for Kay. You're keeping him distracted in a good way. I can only hope he stays this happy when you finally return to Remnant."

"We'll do our best to not be a burden for Kay," Ruby assured, speaking for the team. "We're already super grateful for what he's done. It's only right that we make sure he doesn't suffer because of us."

"Very mature of you to think so, Miss Rose." Winter complimented. "We should give him a sign of our gratitude when this is all over."

"Well, the timing's perfect then!" Roman's green eyes seemed to light up. "It's Christmastime!"

"Kay mentioned that holiday before," Ruby said. "We celebrate New Years on Remnant, but we've never heard of Christmas before. What is it exactly?"

"There's a lot of religious importance behind it for most people," Roman pointed out. "But Kay and I aren't religious so it's not too vital to my point. The main gist of the holiday, and the similar holidays that occur for other religions around this time, is to spend time with people you care about and exchange meaningful gifts!"

"That sounds quite lovely, actually." Weiss smiled at the explanation. "I take it the gifts differ upon age?"

"Yeah, most kids would hate to get clothes and prefer toys that would break in a few years." Roman remarked. "Most teens and adults love clothes, money, and even certain household items depending on their age."

"Would the city have any good places to buy such a gift for Kay?" Blake asked, her ears perking up.

"Only a bunch!" Roman affirmed. "Sounds like you have a mission, then!"

"We haven't been on a proper mission in a while," Yang pointed out playfully.

"And this sounds like a fun one!" Ruby cheered. "Alright, team RWBY, our mission is to find the perfect gift for Kay!"

"I may also participate in the mission as well," Winter butt in with a kind smile. "And we may also have to include Oscar and JNR."

"Agreed!" Ruby pumped the air with a fist. "Mission: Gift for Kay is a go!"

**. . . . .**

"Whoa!" This time, Nora's exclamation was purely genuine. Her face was smooshed against her window as she tried to look upwards at the tall buildings that made up midtown Manhattan. "Not even the tallest building in Vale is as tall as these!"

"Indeed, these are rather tall buildings," Ozpin spoke. Oscar had fallen asleep at some point during the drive. "Do people live here?"

"Not really," Kay shook his head. "A vast majority of people in Manhattan commute from the other four boroughs. There are some apartments here, but they're way too expensive for the normal person to rent."

"Yet you own a proper house upstate?" Ozpin asked.

"It's definitely cheaper than an apartment down here." Kay countered.

"Whatcha looking for, Kay?" Jaune asked, looking out of his window.

"Parking garage," was his answer. "Is Roman still behind us?"

"Yup." Ren answered, easily spotting them as he turned in his seat. Roman's bigger car was right behind. He smiled as Ruby peeked out from behind her driver to wave to him.

After a few minutes of driving through Manhattan traffic, Kay and Roman managed to find a parking garage that didn't appear too crowded. The Huntsmen and Huntresses stretched out and limbered up after the semi-long drive. Roman and Kay were conversing on the side while the Remnant residents huddled up as well.

"Alright gang," Ruby began. "We have ourselves a mission."

"Mission?" Jaune repeated. "Someone in trouble?"

"Yes!" Ruby nodded. "We need to find a good gift for Kay after he's given us so much while we're here."

"Agreed," Ren nodded. He had been Kay's right hand helper in terms of keeping the house clean. Jaune and Yang helped with some of the bigger chores like shoveling snow. The others would help out in little ways as well, but it still never felt like they had done enough to pay him back.

"I saw a few big stores nearby that could have some cool stuff for him." Yang suggested.

"How are we gonna pay for it?" Nora asked. "Our Lien isn't good here."

"Roman said he'd be willing to help us in that department." Weiss answered.

"Alright guys," Kay walked over, causing the group to break immediately. "It's still a little early in the day, so we'll do some walking around Times Square and check out the stores. The sidewalks are rather crowded this time of year, so make sure we stay close. Walk on the right side of the sidewalk and ignore anyone trying to give you anything. Just keep your eyes ahead."

"Those are some big screens," was all Nora could say as they entered the area known as Times Square. The ten visitors stared astonishedly at their surroundings as they found their way to a giant set of red stairs. "Why are there stairs here?"

"Tourism." Roman and Kay answered simultaneously. Tourism indeed, as it was obvious to see the stairs being used as a backdrop for many people's pictures.

"Can we have a group picture?" Ruby asked animatedly. Her eyes were wide with excitement at the thought. Kay nodded and began to retrieve his phone before Roman stepped away from the group.

"I'll take it," he said, getting his phone out. "Everyone stand close to each other!"

"Cheese!" Roman took the pictures as the group smiled and stood huddled on the first steps on the stairs.

"Lemme see!" Ruby rushed over to Roman to check the take.

"That's a weird sight if you really think about it," Kay muttered.

"It's definitely confusing sometimes," Blake agreed. "To see an almost carbon copy of the man. Minus the bowler hat, of course."

"What is that?" Weiss asked, pointing to a tower comprised solely of screens that alternated different advertisements. The block it was on acted as a sort of wedge between the streets.

"That is…" Kay began before faltering in thought. "Roman."

"Ya." The redhead looked up from giving Ruby and Yang his phone to take more pictures.

"What is the big screen tower thingy called?"

"That's literally called Times Square Tower." Roman answered.

"What's its use?" Weiss asked.

"Mostly advertisement space." Kay answered. "There's also a giant ball that falls down to count down the New Year every year."

"That's cool!" Nora cheered. "Does it explode when the counter hits zero?"

"By explode, do you mean light up and cue fireworks?" Kay asked. Nora nodded. "Then yes."

"Awesome!"

"Do you think it would be safe to use our Scrolls?" Winter asked.

"Mm-mm," Kay shook his head. "As advanced as our technology is, your Scrolls will definitely still stand out. I'd rather we didn't give a reason for people to pickpocket us."

"Understood," Winter nodded.

"Did you want to take a particular picture?" Kay asked.

"I simply wanted to show Ironwood proof of the type of civilization here. If that were somehow possible." Winter's response brought a specific idea to mind; if he could find a certain store in mind, he might be able to help them with that.

"Hey Roman!" Kay called his friend over. "Let's bring them over to Bryant Park for a little bit."

The trek to said park was filled with the teens chatting animatedly about their surroundings. Bryant Park around this time was occupied by what was known as the Winter Village, a seasonal exhibition of food and handmade crafts. Ozpin looked around from beside Kay as he led the group. There was a large tree covered in lights and large baubles that dozens of people were crowded around, taking more pictures. It wasn't long until they reached it, though Kay had to turn to the rest of them to address the moment.

"Roman, you mind treating them to lunch around here?" Kay asked, pointing at the small booth with a sign that read, Le Pain Quotidien. "I need to do something real quick."

"Alone?" Roman asked. "You sure?"

"I'm sure, I promise." Kay assured.

"Want anything?"

"Surprise me," Kay shrugged before turning to the rest of the group. "It looks like the seating area has plenty of space for y'all. I'll be back in thirty." Winter watched the man jog away from them and towards a far corner of their block.

"What's he going to do?" Jaune asked.

"No clue," Roman asked, looking around for the nearest street signs. Winter noticed his confused expression as he caught the closest one, before focusing on the moment on-hand. "So, the Winter Village has a bunch of little booths that have food and handcrafted stuff you can get. Just point out a place you wanna try food from while we browse around."

It wasn't long until the group were finally seated in a corner of the public seating area. Despite it being early winter time, Bryant Park was still rather busy with tourists and commuters dominating the sidewalks. Winter idly watched them as she finished her sandwich, specifically keeping watching for any suspicious individuals.

"This place is like Vale, but like, a zillion times more alive!" Ruby gushed as she looked around at the tall buildings around them. "I wonder where Beacon would be in that respect."

"Probably one of those super tall buildings in the distance." Nora suggested, pointing at two particular buildings that Roman easily identified.

"Those are the Chrysler and Empire State buildings, respectively," he said. "They were built in the 1930s in contention with each other to see which would be taller. Obviously, the Empire State building won, at 102 stories high."

"What about that building down there?" Jaune pointed south, at another tall, blue building that rose above the others in its area. "That looks important."

"That's known as a One World Trade Center," Roman sighed. "A beautiful building with a tragic history."

"Tragic?" Ozpin repeated. Roman nodded.

"The original two towers were struck by planes, hijacked by foreign terrorists." Roman recalled. "Thousands of peoples died, and the emotional shockwaves shook all of America and plunged us into another war. You may have read about it." Ozpin and Blake nodded while the rest simply listened somberly. "That incident was a long time ago, but that tower, and the exhibits around and below it, remind us of what was lost that day. So it remains as a culturally important building."

"Heavy," Yang huffed.

"Yup," Roman nodded. "But let's not get too down now, things are much better nowadays!"

"That's good to hear." Blake smiled, finishing her tuna melt sandwich. "It's a beautiful city."

"It definitely is," Roman agreed. "Oh, look who's back!"

"Kay!" Ruby's cheer caused everyone to turn and see their hose jogging his way towards them with a bag in his hands. "Whatcha got there?"

"Oh, hey guys," Kay greeted catching his breath. Roman looked at him curiously, his eyes glancing to the plastic bag with a gray apple logo on it. Green met brown with a moment of understanding. "Winter just gave me a really good idea."

He reached into the bag and retrieved a small box, the size of a small Scroll. Upon opening it, a small black rectangle with a screen was revealed to the group. He placed it on the nearest table, along with two other boxes of the same kind. Roman's eyes were wide open.

"Seeing as your Scrolls are definitely not the safest thing to show off around here, I decided to help you guys with recording your memories while you're here." Kay said. "This device is an IPod Touch, or simply iTouch. These are a few generations old by now, so they were relatively inexpensive. They can be used to communicate with each other, connect to the internet, and even take pictures."

"Wait," Winter spoke up, "You ran off and spent your own money to give this to us, right after I told you about my idea?"

"Well, it would be unfair for you guys to return without any sort of proof of our side's existence," Roman agreed. "And that's three iTouches,one for each team. Perfect choice, Kay. Speaking of which, here." Kay caught the small sandwich that Roman tossed at him and began eating it immediately.

"I activated all three devices instore," Kay said between bites. "So each group can take one and start using them right away."

Ruby, Jaune, and Winter each received an iTouch, and easily maneuvered their way through the apps. It made sense; their Scrolls were decades ahead of their own technology so this stuff must have been kid-level for them. The younger teens quickly found the camera app and started taking pictures of each other and their surroundings.

"Thank you Kay," Winter said with a grateful smile. Her sentiments were echoed by the rest of the group. "That's quite thoughtful of you."

"Not a problem," Kay smiled back as he finished scarfing down his lunch. "Shall we move to the tree and take more pictures?"

Nora had taken the iTouch from Jaune apparently, as she eagerly followed Kay to the decorated tree in Bryant Park as he led the group into a slightly less crowded area before letting them get into their own teams and taking quirky pictures with one another. Kay especially laughed as Ruby put bunny ears behind Weiss's head, much to the heiress's ire and Blake's amusement. Jaune was in charge of making sure Ren and Nora had a picture good enough to fit the hammer girl's directions. Suddenly, Nora pulled Oscar in and told Jaune to take a selfie with them.

_Click_. The somewhat quiet snap from Kay's side caught him off guard, and he turned to see Winter standing a few steps away with her camera facing him. She lowered the device, nodded at Kay, then turned and took pictures of the buildings around them. She also managed to take a couple pictures of Roman, which made Kay chuckle at the idea of presenting those pictures to Ironwood.

"That's fucking brilliant, dude." Roman compliment, stepping up beside Kay. "How much did that cost you?"

"For three previous generation iPods?" Kay shrugged. "Wasn't much. Definitely something they could use while they're here."

They ended up spending another fifteen minutes walking back to Times Square with much slower strides as the group truly took on the guise of foreign tourists. Their first stop was a fun one: Toys R Us.

"Is this a whole store dedicated to toys?" Nora's eyes were wide beyond perceived human proportions. That is, she was smooshing her face in excitement against Kay's as they entered the bustling store, rife with children.

"Yup," Kay nodded. Roman looked around with a jovial smile. "The paradise for children everywhere, Toys R Us."The eight adolescents, including Oscar, looked to each other and nodded in silent agreement. "Wanna look around?"

They would exit the store almost an hour later with Ruby and Yang holding a couple small bags of items. They were followed by Nora, who held a large teddy bear in her arms. Ren followed behind her, walking beside Roman.

"How do you manage, man?" The redhead asked the ninja.

"Day by day," Ren answered. "But it's worth it."

"That's the spirit." Roman smirked, clapping Ren on his back.

Blake, Winter, and Jaune were speaking amongst each other. Roman looked on with a raised eyebrow; recalling their first encounters in the show, he never would have guessed they would have gotten so close. Ren's voice quickly brought Roman out of his stupor.

"Ruby and Weiss told us what you talked about in the car," said the ninja. "As well as their ulterior motive for today. Did you plan for that to happen?"

"As I said to Ruby when we first met," Roman said, looking forward to his best friend at the front of the group. "The guy needs more friends."

"I see." Ren's eyes looked to the group as well with a small smile on his face.

The day went on as a blur of merging colors, between the rushing RWBY and ORNJ teams jumping from photo-op to souvenir store, to the majestic light shows that came to life as the winter sun went down. Kay was sure their iPods' memories would be filled by the end of the night.

"Where are we now, Kay?" Winter asked, stepping up beside Kay. The youths and Ozpin were enamored with their current surroundings. Between two skyscrapers was this giant courtyard including an ice skating rink, a large golden statue, multiple crystal exhibits, and of course, a gigantic tree.

"This is Rockefeller Center," Kay answered, pointing to the tree with a child-like grin. "This tree lights up every year with the most fanfare a tree would ever deserve. It's honestly incredible how people essentially worship this tree."

"It's beautiful." Winter whispered. Her blue eyes scanned the tree and traced over the complex interweaving lights. Her gaze caught and followed a projection of a snowflake on a nearby building."Not just the tree, this entire spectacle."

"Does Atlas not have anything like this?" Kay asked.

"Military parades can only be so momentous," Winter muttered. She recalled how the Council would often given overly large budgets for the most trivial of things and not for funding the defense of the kingdom.

"Hah," Kay chuckled softly. "You'll have to tell me more about them. I'm sure they're heavily overblown."

"I attended one as a rookie and pleaded with Ironwood to never let me stand on a float ever again." Winter admitted, taking a little pleasure in the banter. "Do you support your military?"

"Eh," Kay shrugged. If his response surprised Winter, she didn't show it. "I'm sure some people join it for the honor and dream of protecting the country, but there are definitely issues that need to be addressed, but they're quickly swept under the rug by propaganda. It's the same with certain local policies and forces."

"I'd be willing to discuss that when we get home, if you'd like." Winter offered. "I'd like to see if your views would garner any suggestions for improvement."

"I don't think my opinions would have much weight on your military." Kay responded with raised eyebrows. "But sure, if you think it'll help."

"It will."

The two seemed to reach a silent understanding and nodded, setting the appointment in their heads. There seemed to be a peaceful moment between them until another familiar voice called out to them.

"Kay, Winter!" Weiss called out to them as the teens were grouping together for a picture. "Come join us!"

"Shall we?" Kay gestured forward, like one would do holding an open door.

"We shall." Winter stepped forward, followed by the writer, as they happily joined the group. Roman had them grouped together tightly and made sure to take the pictures several times on each device: Ruby's, Jaune's, Winter's, and finally, Kay's.

* * *

**Hope y'all enjoyed the update!**** Leave a comment below if you're feeling chatty.**** See you next chapter!**

**Much love, Kariotic.**


	12. Chapter 12

**"Hey, Kariotic," One might say. "How are you writing and updating so quickly nowadays?**

**Honestly, the fuck else am I supposed to do right now? I'm waiting for my job to reopen, the world is mid-revolution, I'm especially susceptible to the pandemic illness, and my mental health is slowly deteriorating. Writing is the most fun I'm having besides video games.**

**Anyway, enjoy the chapter! Leave a comment if you feel so inclined. See y'all next time 3**

* * *

"This sucks," Ruby pouted. The gang had decided to take a rest in a small plaza in front of a fancy looking building. A quick glance at the device Kay had gifted her showed that it was now 7:30 in the evening, and the sky was already pitch black. That is, except for the multitude of advertisements and monitors that blasted lights in their faces as they walked through the city. "So many opportunities and we never found the right gift for Kay!"

"He even gave us something super cool on the day we were supposed to give something back to him!" Nora added sadly, leaning on Ren. The ninja simply patted her head and gave Nora her new giant teddy bear. "Thank you, Renny."

"Why was the souvenir store a bad idea again?" Jaune asked.

"Because he _lives_ here, Jaune." Weiss answered. "Why would he need something from the state he lives in?"

"I guess I can see how that makes sense," Jaune slumped in his seat, defeated.

"I technically spent the most time with him in his office," Blake spoke up. "I don't even know that much about him."

"Roman," Winter's voice caused the redhead to look up from his phone. "Where did Kay go anyway?"

"Right up here," Roman answered, pointing up at the hotel.

"Why?" Winter asked, her gaze suddenly intense. The rest of the group listened intently, waiting for the answer. The third chaperone could feel a bead of sweat race down the side of his head. If he lied, would Winter be able to tell? Otherwise, would telling them the truth violate his friendship with Kay?

"Personal reasons," Roman said, looking straight into Winter's eyes. She sighed as she turned to look up at the hotel room. "He was going to make this stop in the city regardless of you guys being here."

"What does that mean?" Yang asked. "Does he always come down here?"

Roman sighed. He had already said too much with that last one. He took one last look upwards in the general direction of Kay. He took a deep breath and started to speak.

**. . . . .**

"Karis," A cold, passive tone. Dark brown eyes that glared with a steel determination. A black dress uniform with several medal pins over her left breast. His younger sister looked up to him with a cruel aloofness.

"Maya," Kay nodded a greeting in return. He held two envelopes in his hands.

"Another year, another visit, then?" Maya asked. "I suppose we can be polite."

"I would like that," Kay said. "How have you been?"

"I recently returned from my overseas deployment." Maya answered. "I've only this week for R&R."

"That's good," Kay nodded again. The distance between the two adults made this rather awkward. "I'm glad to see you home safe."

"How is teaching going for you?" Maya's neutral expression remained the same. She seemed to ignore the sentiment of his last statement. "I know that classes are done for the semester."

"They went well, no one failed." Kay said.

"Was that because you were too lenient?" Maya cut in harshly.

"No," Kay's eyes narrowed, annoyed. "I like to think I taught them well enough."

"I see," Maya said dismissively. "And are you still chasing your silly dream?"

"Writing isn't silly," Kay retorted. "It's earned me good money and some peace of mind."

"Trivial, then." Maya snarked. "If not silly, then trivial."

"How was following orders and marching to someone else's horn like a dead drone?" Kay snarked back.

"I am _more_ than proud of what I do," she snapped. "You could have been so much more if you let your silly sickness go."

"Silly?" Kay felt himself ball his fists.

"Yes, silly." Maya repeated. "Sorry, trivial. Mother would actually talk to you if you simply listened to her. Everything wrong is in your mind."

"Again, you assume to understand something you don't," Kay growled.

"And let's not even get started with your ex," Maya laughed. "Good riddance, I say."

"What?"

"For her, I mean." Maya clarified haughtily. "She could do so much better, and so she did."

"You little shit!" Kay all be yelled.

"I see you're upset Karis," Maya simply smiled victoriously. "Unless you have some way to prove me wrong, I see no reason for me to think any different than we did for the last eight years."

Kay went silent. Not because he had nothing to say, rather he didn't want to explode at his own little sister. Regardless of what she said to his face, he would never do anything rash to her. And she knew that. He simply seethed as Maya smugly took in the moment.

"Hm?" A sudden alert chimed through the hotel room and Maya retrieved her smartphone. A look of confusion before looking up to her visitor. "Karis?"

"What." Not a question, just a response.

"This person does not look like she works for the hotel." Maya muttered. "Do you know who this woman is?"

"What?" Kay asked, then understood when Maya flipped her phone to show him. Kay watched the live feed view of the hallway directly outside of her hotel room, where an unhappy-looking Winter stood. The Specialist raised her fist to knock.

"Excuse me," her voice rang through the wooden barrier with clear authority. "I'm searching for Karis Gray and have been told he has been in this room. Please open the door so we may retrieve him."

"Retrieve?" Maya repeated, looking up to Kay once more. "What have you done?"

"Nothing illegal."

"Nonsense," Maya retorted quickly. "I'm letting her in."

_How the hell is this gonna play out?_ Kay thought, watching Maya walk over and unlock the door to her room. She was deftly moved aside as Winter stepped in and regarded him first, scanning his body as though to check for wounds.

"Is everything alright, Winter?" Kay asked.

"I'm sorry, you're in _my_ apartment," Maya stepped in between them. "I am Captain Maya Gray of the United States Army, and I demand you identify yourself." Winter glanced at her, then a shrugging Kay, then back to Maya before retrieving something from her pocket.

"I am Lieutenant Colonel Winter Schnee, right hand to the General of an undercover work force." Winter displayed her identification for Maya to see. The younger woman mouthed out the words: Atlesian Forces. "Our company is under a need-to-know basis, and would not be recognized by the US Army. Mr. Gray, are you alright?"

"I am fine, Ms. Schnee." Kay answered. He did his best to hide the satisfaction in seeing Maya look to him with astonishment.

"W-what has Karis been doing for your… forces?" Maya asked.

"Kay has been tasked with hosting and mentoring some youth delegates from overseas," Winter began. Kay mentally laughed; it wasn't a total lie. He wasn't teaching them much other than about their world. "I am the officer assigned to join the delegates and was the one responsible for selecting him."

"May I ask why?" Maya asked. "He is my brother."

"You say that, yet he has barely mentioned you in casual conversation." Winter noted aloud. "Plus, I gathered you were arguing earlier. My conclusion is that you regularly contest each other about his choices to leave the Army and take up writing and teaching."

"That is…" Maya hesitated. Kay wondered what she was going to say. Inaccurate? Lie? "Rather blunt, but yes. We do not agree."

"Then, allow me to tell you why I personally selected Kay." The use of his nickname seemed to make Maya flinch in surprise as Winter turned to face her. "Regardless of his history, I have seen great moral strength in his practice. As a teacher and mentor, he goes beyond the call of duty and provides in-depth assistance and understanding to each of his students. He is not afraid to step out of line in the face of an armed enemy, despite being a civilian. His mental illness aside, Kay has shown greater value to the nation, nay the world, as an individual than almost all of the officers I serve alongside."

"I-I see," Maya shrunk under the Specialist's freezing glare.

"Orders for a soldier may be important," Winter continued. "But unless you are willing to question them and find the greater meaning for your position's purpose, you are simply a drone, an empty shell that you let everyone else mold. Kay has shown that strength, determination, and invaluable amicability despite the pain dealt by his illness, the world, and even his own family."

Maya's eyes were staring at the ground, soundly defeated by Winter's words. Kay would have felt better if the earlier scenario was an outlier, but no. The last six years he would make an effort to reconnect with his sister, but she would always take that time to talk him down and mock him. This moment felt necessary. He looked to Winter as she finished her speech.

"I cannot express how grateful to Kay myself and the others in this group have been as he's hosted us," she said, maintaining a professionally even tone. "And after getting to know him, I can tell you one thing."

Maya looked up to her to listen. Her cold walls had been thoroughly shattered.

"You're lucky he's still alive to come back and even find the kindness to try to visit you." Winter then turned to Kay. "They've waited downstairs long enough. We must be going."

Kay simply tossed the two cards he held in his hands onto a nearby table. One read "Maya," while the other read "Mother." He walked around the statue of the told-off Maya and followed Winter out of the hotel room, closing the door behind him. It wasn't until they made it to the elevator did Winter let out a breath.

"Thanks for that," Kay said, letting out a deep breath of his own. "I don't know what I would have said if I was there alone. I might've just stormed out angry and let her win as always."

"Why?" Winter asked. "Why do you care about what she thinks so much?"

"She…" Kay thought for a second. Why did he keep coming back here every year if it did nothing but hurt him. "She's my little sister. We were very close when we were young. It wasn't until I was out of the Army did she and my mother essentially join together and demonize me and my choices. I thought there was still a way to reconnect, but she always just pushes back."

"Then stop," Winter said simply. "How many times have you done this?"

"Six times," Kay answered truthfully. "And not a drop of progress gained."

"Not all battles can be won, nor all sacrifices halted." Winter said. "Ironwood taught me that after my first mission. Perhaps the time has come for you to let her go. It's clearly an unhealthy habit."

"How do you mean?"

"Unclench your fists."

"What?"

"Look down, Kay."

Kay looked down and raised his hands. As she said, they were still in tightly clenched fists. He closed his eyes, took several deep breaths, and slowly relaxed his hands. As if on cue, the elevator doors opened to reveal the lobby.

"Feel better?"

Brown eyes met blue, a moment of understanding.

"Yeah, thanks."

**. . . . .**

"How did you like the city?" Kay asked, his eyes stared firmly ahead on the road. On the drive back, his car held Winter and JNR once more while Roman drove RWBY and Ozcar. The three teens were knocked out in the back seat. Nora had to put her teddy bear in the trunk, so Ren was designated cuddle buddy for this nap. Winter looked straight ahead as well.

"It was very lively," Winter answered. "A beautifully decorated place. The food was good as well."

"Mhmm," Kay had brought them to a Chipotle. He and Ren made sure Nora didn't go overboard with her order. They were lucky enough to have happened upon a rather quiet part of Midtown during dinnertime. "Thanks again, by the way."

"For what?" Winter asked. She knew, of course. He just needed to say it himself.

"For helping me with Maya." Kay said. "And for helping my realize that it was time to let go."

"Does your therapist know you visit her?"

"They also made it a point for me to stop doing so," Kay answered. "So thanks for at least making my last visit a thorough one."

"I'm glad to have helped you." Winter said with a smile. "Think of it as my thanks for helping us for this long."

"It's been two weeks," Kay pointed out.

"Two months in our time," Winter clarified. "It would bring our loved ones relief to know we were in the care of someone like you."

"I appreciate the sentiment." Kay nodded. Another thought came up. "Could you tell me something?"

"Sure, Kay."

"Why were the kids so determined to see so many stores?" Winter's soft laughter at his question was quite a soothing sound. "The souvenir stores all have the same things, but they seemed to ignore that fact."

"They were looking for a gift," Winter answered. "On the ride here, Roman told them how this time of year was celebrated with gift things to one another. They simply wanted to show their thanks for your care."

"Ah, gotcha." Kay nodded, looking in the rearview mirror. Roman was still behind them. He could just make out his friend talking to Oscar in the front seat. "They don't need to do that."

"Now why is that?" Winter asked, turning to him.

"I'm just doing what any decent person would." Kay shrugged. "You can thank me when you're happily on your way home."

An awkward silence followed. Was he looking forward to them leaving so quickly? What did he mean by that?

"Do… you not like us being here, Kay?" Winter asked. "Are we a burden?"

"W-what?" Kay asked, incredulous. "No, no, no. I mean, I like to believe a sign that I did a good job is when you're all healthy and happy when the time comes for you to return home. Just knowing you'll be able to return to your loved ones safely and without further issue will be thanks enough."

"I don't know what I expected," Winter shook her head. "You'd probably refuse any monetary prize from Ironwood."

"Lien doesn't work here," Kay reminded.

"It's the principle thought that mattered," Winter countered. Kay chuckled. "I'm sure they'll show their thanks in some way or another soon."

Another awkward silence filled the car. Nora murmured something in her sleep. A motorcycle sped by and illegally wove in between cars around them.

"Hey Winter," Kay broke the momentary silence.

"Yes?"

"Did you mean what you said to Maya?"

"I meant every word I said in that room," Winter answered. "Every word."

**. . . . .**

"Kay!" Ruby called out to Kay as he exited his bathroom. All of RWBY, JNR, Oscar, and Winter stood in the middle of the living room. The excitement in their eyes betrayed their exhaustion from walking all over the city. "We wanna give you something!"

"Oh, did you guys actually find a gift for me?" Ruby flinched at the question. "Don't worry, Winter told me on the ride back!"

"Sister!" Weiss complained, but Winter simply shrugged.

"He was concerned about your intensity of searching every store," the Specialist explained calmly. "It would have been rude to string him along."

"Anyways," Ruby brought the focus back to the moment at hand. "Sure, we didn't find the perfect gift for you in the city. But, Roman gave us a great idea while you and Winter went up that tower!"

"Happy Holiday!" Nora exploded forward with a rather large card as the group cheered the greeting.

"A greeting card?" Kay closely examined the card. It was simply a piece of folded oaktag covered in designs covered in marker. A closer look revealed that it was actually the individual emblems of the members of Team RWBY and JNR! A crudely drawn red rose and yellow heart were above two very well drawn designs of a black fire and blue snowflake. Next to it was the other three students' emblems, starting with Ren's pink lotus flower, Nora's hammer and lightning bolt in black and pink, then Jaune's simple yellow arcs. As crude and simple as the drawings were, the fact that they made the effort counted. Opening the card, Kay was greeted with various little messages from each of the visitors. Even Ozpin and Winter decided to add in a few kind words.

"Ahem," Weiss cleared her throat purposefully, as Kay had been rather silent as he looked through the messages. He looked up to them and broke up in a wide grin.

"Thank you so much guys," Kay said warmly. "I can't properly tell you guys how much this means to me."

"It's the least we can do to show our thanks," Weiss dipped into a slight curtsy.

"As their former headmaster, I had to join in as well." Ozpin said. "Not only have you generously housed and fed us, you found ways to keep us active. You've even come to our defense in times of danger." Kay recalled the moment where Winter instigated the defense of the fast food restaurant, but decided not to speak up. "I wish to personally thank you for your continued support in our peculiar predicament."

Winter stayed silent as she listened to Ozpin's speech. All of a sudden, each of the youths burst forward to point out their message in the card. Kay simply allowed them to crowd him and excitedly read their words aloud to him simultaneously. Ozpin simply stood back and took a sip of some tea. The Specialist walked over to the kitchen and retrieved two mugs. Kay did promise they would talk that night. After everything that happened today, she was still looking forward to it.

Her blue met his brown again. He smiled and sent her a subtle nod.

It would seem he was as well.


	13. Chapter 13

"What are your thoughts on that?" Winter asked, watching Kay lower his mug.

"I think that regardless of position," Kay said as he reached for more tea. "There is no one above the law. It is an authority's responsibility to enforce it, but it does not make them immune to the consequences when they break the law."

"May I propose a hypothetical scenario?" Winter asked, waiting for Kay to nod. "An Atlesian soldier is called to mediate a small Faunus protest in front of city hall. This group is protesting peacefully and is facing backlash from the humans around them. What should be the Atlesian soldier's priority?"

"I'm assuming Remnant's Councils made free speech and rights to protest a common right of the population?" Kay asked. Winter nodded. "Then it should be the soldier's priority to make sure the peaceful protest is protected."

"Of course," Winter smiled before dropping it as a sour memory brought a deep frown to her face. "There have been some unfortunate instances where that wasn't the case."

"Oh trust me," Kay rolled his eyes. "It's just as common here if not more. It's… almost annoyingly normalized."

"Why is that?" Winter asked, though her eyes seemed to reveal that she knew the answer.

"Unchecked individual biases and beliefs, stagnant training methods focusing more on combat than peaceful mediation," Kay listed off. "Oh, and corporations buying in to make sure their property is protected over other human lives."

"Our worlds are rather similar in that respect," Winter sighed. "As long as inherent human greed persists, there will be no peace."

"Took the words right out of my mouth," Kay agreed. He lifted his mug towards her. The Specialist reciprocated the action and clinked her own mug. The two shared a silent moment in the usually chaotic house. "What's going through your mind?"

"I'm wondering how they'll be able to bring us home," Winter answered.

"What did it take for you to get here?" Kay asked. "I'm assuming you used your glyphs. Weiss told me something similar had happened when they ended up here."

"Hmm," Winter nodded as she took another sip of tea. "I had to focus a Gravity glyph around a recreation of the bomb that launched the teams here."

"Is it hard to mechanically recreate a glyph?" Kay asked. "Has that ever been done?"

"Atlesian technology is definitely capable of replicating certain Semblances." Winter said. "I'm sure there is a way for them to recreate an intense gravitational focus."

"But that's what you did to get here," Kay retorted. "Would that work for getting you back?"

"My personal theory before I landed here was to make a gravitational focus that lasted long enough become a hallway rather than a one-way door." Winter answered.

"Would it be better to recreate the glyph with technology or have someone controlling it?" Kay asked.

"I'd like to believe a machine would be better at holding open a gateway," Winter shrugged. "If myself, Weiss, or even our mother attempted to keep it open, we might grow too tired and have the gateway collapse on whoever is travelling."

"And who knows what could happen in that case." Kay nodded.

"You should count yourself lucky," Winter muttered. "Your world isn't under constant threat from evil monsters than would destroy human lives without any hesitation or conscience."

"You say that like humans themselves aren't capable of great destruction," Kay sighed. "You've probably read enough reference books in my office to know that now."

"I suppose," Winter replied. "At least you can put faces and names to your monsters. What stops you from rising up?"

"The same thing that stops the Faunus," Kay asked. "When a protest happens, will we be protected? Attacked? Supported or hated? Will we even be heard? Will the responses be genuine or purely performative? It's a toss up that depends purely on how the enforcement reacts."

"And here?" Winter asked. "In Glen Plains?"

"We have a rather small police presence here," Kay answered. "It's already a rather quiet town, so there isn't much crime other than a few muggings and rowdy college kids."

The rest of the night continued as the two adults continued to cycle through different topics of casual debate. Cups of tea turned to glasses of wine and much more light-hearted topics. Kay felt the weight on his shoulders lighten more and more as the conversation went on. It was… nice.

**Atlas Military Outpost in the Central Grimmlands…**

"General Ironwood," James held in a sigh as his requested visitor entered his makeshift office. He looked up from his paperwork to see Willow Schnee enter. The normal haze of her usual vice was absent today, surprisingly. "I heard you had some sort of breakthrough regarding rescuing my daughters."

"Yes we have Willow," He rose to greet her properly, but the older woman simply waved him down.

"Please skip the formalities," Willow said. Her very tone revealed how tired she truly was. "You are no longer dealing with Jacques."

"That is exactly why I'm acting my utmost," James replied with a soft smile. "Your former husband would not have come down here if it didn't profit the SDC in some way."

"Indeed," Willow didn't laugh, but the snark directed at her ex-husband easily brought a small to her face. She had much more say in the way of her family now. "So, why exactly have you summoned me here physically instead of simply a Scroll call?"

"We need to closely research the Schnee glyphs," Ironwood began. "Both Weiss and Winter were able to transport themselves and the rest through the combined use of the Dust bomb and a Gravitational glyph. We won't ask you to hold the glyph open, so we would very much like to attempt an artificial glyph to maintain a stable tunnel between here and wherever Winter and the others may have gone."

"And what of this Dust bomb?" Willow asked. "Will you need the SDC to help supply the Dust for more replicas?"

"Perhaps not," James answered. "We still have plenty of what we needed in our own portable stores, though if we do happen to run out during the testing stages, could we expect to rely on your assistance?"

"Of course," Willow nodded. "If all of this is for the safe return of my family and their friends, I have no qualms in redirecting our reserves."

"Then let us begin."

About an hour later, Willow was wiping the sweat off her brow with her forearm. It had been quite a while since she had competently used the family's signature glyphs, at least thirty years. She looked down at the designated testing area: a large, white room with a single target marked at the middle of the floor in black tape. Hung precariously above the target was a lone metal box, swinging from the momentum of the last target spot below was painted with debris and tiny Dust particles that a few Atlesian guards were tasked with carefully cleaning so as not to disrupt the carefully crafted Dust bomb replicas with specific amouns of Burn, Spark, and some strange purple crystal she was not familiar with. There was also some weird energy pulsing from the middle of the target. Upon her noticing this, Ironwood told her there was another force being put into play that she wasn't authorized to know about.

"It will take some time to find the needed strength for us to replicate your Semblance," Ironwood said. "Please, take a rest and prepare for more testing tomorrow. We have a space prepared for your stay while you aid us."

"I appreciate the notion," Willow caught her breath and straightened herself up to return to her casting form. "But I have no qualms for stopping so early.. If I require rest, I will let you know."

_As expected from the mother of Winter, Weiss, and Whitley_, Ironwood mused. He recalled how the youngest Schnee child managed to turn a new leaf in recent years, dutifully walking beside Willow to make some proper reforms pushed by Weiss. He watched as another large, black circle with complex patterns and fractal arms appeared around the newly placed replica Dust bomb.

_BOOM!_ The ground shook again but no recorded effect on the metal box above.

"Again." Willow Schnee ordered. The Atlesian researchers obliged. This time, the General noticed a slight difference in the patterns of the Gravity glyph that the eldest Schnee used. It was less geometric, and much more wavy. From what Winter had told him, it was very difficult to change the complicated strands of energy in their glyphs; the fact that Willow was able to do so after a single attempt after so many inactive years reminded James exactly why the Schnee family Semblance was so heralded. The wavy pattern spun rapidly as the power of the glyph was activated and applied immense power on the bomb.

Another explosion shook the room once more.

"General Ironwood, look!" Shouted one of the researchers, pointing at the space above the target.

The metal box was gone!

"Finally," Ironwood began to feel the first vestiges of true hope. "Progress."

**Back on Earth…**

"What is it?" Nora asked, slurping down another pancake. Ren refilled her plate and the girl once again lost in her love for doughy disks.

"I don't know," Kay answered, lightly tapping the metal box that was sat on the kitchen counter.

"And you said it was here when you woke up?" Weiss asked.

"You sure you didn't already have it?" Yang pressed, tilting her head.

"I had no metal box in this house before last night," Kay rolled his eyes at the blonde. "I woke up and found it on the floor next to me."

"That's weird," Jaune concluded. Oscar nodded. Blake was noticeable silent as she gazed between the box and the space where Kay had apparently found it.

"Does it do anything?" Ruby asked, tapping the box. Her touch elicited a soft _dink_ sound that told them it was a solid block of metal.

"Allow me to look at it again," Winter said, picking up the box.

"Careful," Kay warned. Winter turned the box in her hands with ease.

It feels like a basic aluminum cube." Winter estimated. "It's built like armor, though."

"Like part of a wall," Weiss added.

"Right," Winter nodded. "Atlas would use this sort of material to temporarily support broken walls and levees during construction and frontier towns."

"Wait!" Blake's sudden outburst caused everyone in the kitchen to freeze in place. Even Ren stopped washing the dishes to hear her revelation. "Say that last part again, Winter."

"Atlas would use this sort of…"Winter's speech began to slow down as she began to realize the connection. "Kay."

"Yea?"

"You're _absolutely_ sure you had never seen it before?"

"Never felt the need to buy a lone, solid box of aluminum plating, no."

"Then…" The realization began spread to the rest of the group. Oscar's eyes shone a vibrant green as the young boy flew off of his stool and to the living room.

"This is where we landed, correct?" Ozpin's voice boomed with exasperated excitement. "Correct?"

"Yea!" Ruby answered. "We landed right where Kay sleeps right now."

"We're all on the same page then?" Ozpin looked to his students.

"Someone from home is finally able to find us!" Yang concluded for everyone, causing the entire kitchen to erupt in cheers.

"We can go home!" Nora cheered, pulling along Ren's sleeve with enthusiasm.

"This is amazing!" Weiss exclaimed. "They must have found a way to imitate our family's glyphs!"

"Maybe General Ironwood got it touch with Mother," Winter suggested. Her younger sister nodded.

"That would make sense."

"Whaddya think, Kay?" Ruby asked, turning to their host.

"That's great news!" Kay said, smiling wide.

"Right?" Ruby didn't even hesitate to jump at the older man with a hug. "Oh, I'm so happy I could cry."

"I wouldn't get our hopes up just yet," Ozpin's much more serious tone cut through the hopeful and happy cheers from the group. "This little box just means they just managed to find a starting point to getting us home. We may still be here for quite some time, but we can all take this moment as an absolute win!"

"It's definitely a good sign of progress from General Ironwood." Winter added. She turned back to Kay with a smile. "I would hope you don't mind still hosting us for a little while longer."

"What?" The question left the man befuddled. "Of course!"

"An eternity of thanks as always, Kay," Ozpin bowed to the writer. "You've been nothing but generous and kind to us ever since we landed here. I could only hope we could reward you with something when this is all over."

"The greatest reward I could ever want," Kay began, looking over the young adults and to Winter with a wide, earnest grin. "Is to see you all happy and healthy on your way back to Remnant. That's all I ask for."

"You're much too humble, Grey." Ozpin chuckled.

_Bruising! Briiiing!_ Kay's cell phone went off, and the writer excused himself and walked into his office. Blake followed, having had enough excitement for the moment and stood by the closed office door. However, that didn't stop her exceptional Faunus hearing from catching bits of the conversation that occurred inside.

"Hello, Grey here," Kay's voice answered the call with a sense of professionalism. "Yes, I did, thank you. Is there something I can help you with, sir?"

_He might be talking to a superior_. Blake thought. _The only place where he goes by Grey is at the college. Maybe they're talking to him about the past semester_.

"Yes, sir." Kay continued. "I understand. Thank you for the opportunity."

If there was any emotion coming from Kay's tone, Blake couldn't tell. It still held its professional edge, though there seemed to be a weird feeling in the air. She heard Kay take a deep sigh and sit down in his chair. A pregnant pause. Another deep sigh.

_What happened?_

"Fuck," Blake flinched lightly at the sound of Kay cursing, though she wasn't prepared for the next sentence from Kay. "This... was some shitty timing to be let go. But how the hell did the chairman find out about them? Who the fuck told the fucking chairman of my school?"

Another pause. Blake's heart beat as she listened intently.

"Roman!"

* * *

**Dun dun dun... Blake finds herself hearing something she really should not have. ****Oh, also, plot progression from Remnant! Things are starting to get good! Probably.**

**Hope you enjoyed this chapter! Leave a favorite, follow, or comment if you feel so inclined. See you next time!**

**PS: I started another story! It's called Nightmare on Remnant, and it's a RWBY x Pokemon Crossover! If that's the sort of thing you're into, check it out!**


	14. Chapter 14

If Kay was upset about the phone call he had yesterday, he didn't make it very obvious. However, he did spend most of the day in his office, muttering his thanks to Ren for breakfast as he took his plate to his desk. Blake simply watched this from one of his office chairs, pretending to read another book.

Did Roman really have something to do with Kay's current issue? What _was_ Kay's current issue? All she knew was that a chairperson at Kay's college had contacted him about his current situation. The only other person who knew about his situation was Roman, but he seemed earnest enough when they interacted.

"Everything alright?" Blake asked, trying her best to sound innocent. Kay glanced up from his frantic typing and met her gaze. His eyes had a distant look in them, as though he wasn't really there at the moment, before he seemed to refocus on her.

"Yeah," he answered simply as he resumed typing. "Just doing my best to getting as much writing done as possible."

"You're working on a poetry book, right?" Blake asked, lowering her book completely. "How is that going?"

"It's a bit pressing," Kay admitted. He sighed as he leaned away from his computer. "A minor complication popped up, so I gotta rush a bit more."

"Wouldn't that make your poems a little worse along the way?" Blake rose from her seat and walked over to him. Peering over his shoulder, she saw several documents were open in smaller windows on one side while there was a much larger window taking up the entire other side of the screen.

"I'm not just pumping out poems right now," Kay chuckled. "I still write poems in my free time, when the need to write comes to me. And since I haven't published any poems for several years now, I have quite the backlog of poems to sort through and organize before sliding it off to be edited."

"By Roman?"

"By Roman." Kay nodded. If the name of the man he accused yesterday caused him to be angry, Blake noticed no such sign. Suddenly, the bell rang. "That's him right now, actually."

"Uh, Kay?" Ruby's voice echoed from the other side of the office door as she knocked on it. "Roman's here to see you!"

"Let him in here, Rubes," Kay called back. "Do you mind giving us some privacy, Blake? You can bring that book with you, of course."

Blake nodded as she made to leave the office, only to meet Roman at the open door and greet him with a neutral nod. She gave him no time to respond as she walked over to her friends in the living room. That is, until she stopped and decided to simply lean against the nearby wall so she could just make out what the two men's conversation would be. What she didn't notice was Oscar and Winter glancing over at her knowingly, but saying nothing.

"Ren!" Nora lovingly tackle-hugged her partner as he was finishing up washing the dishes. "Come play with us!"

"Nora, I-ah!" Ren suddenly yelped and clutched his hand away from the sink. "That… hurt?"

The surprise in Ren's voice caught Winter's attention as she walked over to the pair in the kitchen Ren was cradling his left hand and was looking at his wound with astoundment. Apparently, he was washing a knife when Nora had surprised him, causing him to cut himself. A small, bleeding cut on his palm seemed to slow time down. Winter saw the boy's eyes narrow in an attempt to focus; he was attempting to channel his Aura. A faint light shone around the wound, but it didn't instantaneously heal the cut like it normally would

"W-what?" Ren was dumbfounded as his cut refused to heal.

"What's going on?" Nora's tone was serious, worried. "Why isn't your Aura working?"

The question was asked loud enough for the commotion in the living to cease completely. Weiss, Jaune, Ruby, and Yang quickly returned to the kitchen and crowded around Ren to see his wound.

"What happened!"

"Are you alright?"

"Why can't you use your Aura?"

"Nora, you have to be more careful!"

"I didn't know!"

"Children." The lone word was said with tense authority as Ozpin approached the crowd. Winter stepped back to his side. "I was afraid that our original suspicions are founded in practice."

"Original suspicions?" Weiss repeated. "You mean you knew something like this might happen?"

"About a week ago, the same day that we intervened at that restaurant," Winter interjected, bringing everyone's gazes to her. "I suffered a similar mistake and cut myself on one of the kitchen knives. However, my Aura did eventually heal the wound, it was only a little slower than it normally was. I credited the slow speed to our distance from our home."

"But, our Aura is based on our souls, right?" Jaune asked. "And we're all in one piece."

"But Kay's world doesn't function like our world," Weiss countered, slowly coming to a realization. "Our Auras are becoming familiar with this world's rules and slowly fading."

"At the time, we had no solid evidence to support this," Ozpin spoke up. "The very reason why humans evolved with Aura was to enforce balance between mankind and the Grimm. That balance, however, only exists on Remnant. In a world that doesn't rely upon Huntsmen and Huntresses to fight against such forces, our Auras must have been deemed... Useless and began to fade."

"But I don't want it to fade!" Nora cried. "Our Auras are our soul! Does that mean our souls will fade away?"

"No," Ozpin placated. "But it means that the longer we spend on this world, our Aura's may eventually fade away completely. However, we can only hope that Atlas's research is making more progress in getting us home. So, for now, I must urge you all…"

He looked to everyone in the room, including Blake who was still stood by Kay's office.

"Stay out of trouble," Ozpin declared. "Avoid getting into any other altercations and avoid leaving this house if you can. Only myself, Winter, Miss Xiao-Long, and Mister Arc will be allowed to go out to assist Kay in getting supplies. Other than that, this house is the safest place we can be. I will be asking Kay in helping to keep an eye out for further developments on Atlas's attempts to connect with us. Is that understood?"

"Yes sir," was the answer given in unison. Ruby and Weiss quickly walked over to their bedroom and shortly returned with Kay's first aid kit from their bathroom. Winter watched as Ren took the kit and began to treat his own wound.

"We must really be careful, Ozpin." Winter sighed. "If Kay decides to bring us out on the town, our paranoia might make things worse."

"You may be right," Ozpin nodded. "Though, from what I hear, Kay has his own worries. Isn't that right, Miss Belladonna?"

"Ah," Blake flinched at getting caught. There was no real use for her to lie to the two adults, so she sighed and decided to spill what she had heard the day before. When she had finished, she looked behind her to ensure their conversation wouldn't be stumbled upon by either Kay or Roman. "And from what I heard just now, Roman is innocent. He never contacted anyone other than his superiors in the city."

"So someone has found out about Kay's situation," Ozpin repeated. "But since Roman wouldn't dare reveal such a thing, it means someone else may have gotten in touch with the college. Someone who may know a part of the situation, but not the whole thing. That is rather troubling."

"Out of context, his position in all this does seem rather suspect," Winter agreed. "But who would know just enough to… be… suspicious."

"Winter?" Kay's voice caused Blake to jump; when did he open the door? She didn't even hear footsteps! Their host simply looked from the Specialist to the Faunus in confusion. "You guys okay? I heard Ren yell earlier."

"Oh, yes." Ozpin answered. "Nora had caused Ren to have a minor accident while he was washing up. You know how she gets, excitable as she is."

"Right, right." Kay nodded, accepting it. The office door opened wider to reveal Roman organizing papers into a manila folder. The editor met eyes with everyone involved and smiled meekly.

"Howdy," his normally cheery demeanor was noticeably absent, Winter noticed. The worried look in his eyes betrayed the energy of his greeting. "Just stopping by to get Kay's affairs in order."

"Affairs?" Ozpin repeated.

"His new poetry book," Roman clarified. "He's still rather well known in the poetry circuit, so it should sell relatively well."

"Why would you be so worried about it selling well?" Winter asked. "Isn't the college paying you during the holiday?"

"I'm an adjunct instructor," Kay shrugged. "I'm under a specific contract that doesn't pay as much during the periods where I don't teach. I can be called in to do a winter semester class if needed, but I wasn't called to do so this time."

"Oh, do you normally teach extra semesters?" Ozpin asked. Kay nodded. "That's commendable of you, Kay."

"It helps pay the bills," the writer shrugged.

"Welp, I'll be on my way then," Roman said as he squeezed on by and made his way out. Before he left, he turned and shouted back, "I'll keep you updated, man!"

"Appreciate it!" Kay answered with a wave and smile. He turned to the trio with a raised eyebrow. "Something up, guys?"

"Nothing, Kay," Ozpin answered for them. Winter looked like she wanted to say something, but ended up following the Headmaster's decision. "With this current project finished, what are your plans for now?"

"Keep writing," Kay answered with an earnest smile. "It's all I can do right now, other than wait for Roman's feedback and confirmation for publishing.

The rest of the day went by in a blur, though Blake kept her focus on Kay as subtly as she could. There was definitely something on his mind, and he was very good at hiding it. His laughter and smiles never reached his eyes. His glance was constantly looking between each of them and the windows, as though he was waiting for something. He seemed very at home playing video games with Yang and Jaune though, picking up their preferred shooting game and viciously beating both of them.

"No fair!" Yang whined as her part of the screen went black for the eighth time that session. "I was watching where you were going!"

"Did you just admit to screen-looking?" Kay asked, deadpan. Yang simply stuck her tongue out and picked up her controller again.

"At least your deaths are still in the single digits," Jaune sighed."

"Where the hell are you?" Yang yelled as her screen went black again.

"You're good at sniping, Kay," Winter yawned as she observed the game.

"Nothing like the real thing, but I appreciate the compliment," Kay chuckled. He sighed through his nose before passing his controller over to Ruby. "Here, Rubes. Make it even for me."

"Now that's just mean," Jaune moped.

"If you manage to still be in first place by the time I get back, I'll make you cookies tomorrow." Kay promised as he got up and walked over to the coat rack by the door.

"Sweet!" Ruby zoomed over to where Kay had previously sat and was already moving his character to a different part of the map.

"Where are you going, Kay?" Oscar asked. In his hands was another one of Kay's published books.

"Just gonna take a quick walk outside," Kay answered. "Won't be gone long."

The door closed as Yang started yelling at her sister for adding another death to her tally, though Jaune cheered halfheartedly for the other blonde joining him in his misery. Blake watched as Winter glanced her way, as though sending her a message. Was the Faunus supposed to do something? Should she have followed him? She answered the Atlesian's gaze with a small shrug. Winter looked to Oscar, expecting Ozpin, but the boy was given control as Kay demanded the teen at least share the moment with his friends.

"Winter, where are you going?" Weiss, who was already barely paying attention to the game and chose to have a light conversation with Ren over cards, watched as her sister rose and made her own way towards the door.

"Just to make sure Kay is alright," Winter answered, pulling on her jacket. "He seemed stressed today, so it might be nice to at least have a friend to talk to."

"I see," Weiss nodded. If she could read the subtext behind those words, she didn't show it. "Be safe, sister."

"Of course," Winter departed, though not without sparing a glance back at Blake and Oscar before closing the door behind her. Oscar, ever so diligently, locked the door behind her and returned to his spot next to Weiss and Ren. Blake's attention returned to the group as Yang started teasing Weiss.

"They _have _been spending a lot of time together," the brawler pointed out playfully. "Maybe it's time for more late-night canoodling."

"They do talk a lot at night," Blake found herself agreeing. Her partner shot her a glare.

"Winter is the only other person other than Roman close to his age," Weiss countered. "And no offense to Ozpin, but it would get rather boring talking to an older person as a regular conversation partner."

"Yeah, tell me about it," Oscar joked, causing the entire group to laugh.

"Yeah, but they talk for a while at night," Ruby pointed out.

"And sleep next to each other," Yang pushed.

"Winter sleeps on the couch," Weiss countered. "Kay, like a proper gentleman, sleeps on the floor."

"Yes, a proper gentleman." Nora repeated. "Would he do the same for any of us?"

"He literally gave us his actual bedrooms in his house," Ren answered, patting his partner on her head.

"Good point."

"You're all blowing this way out of proportion!" Weiss declared passionately, waving her arms in emphasis. "It's a simple, respectful friendship between two consenting, intellectual adults!"

"Wow, way to suck all the romance out of it," Jaune commented.

"Relax, Ice Queen," Yang laughed. "You're too easy, sometimes."

"You're all the worst," Weiss plopped back down with a pout and her arms crossed.

"No but really, though?" Nora popped in. All eyes slid to her for the moment. "I ship it."

"What are you looking at?" Kay turned to see Winter approaching him; he hadn't walked far, he just walked out into the empty plains that trailed beyond his backyard. She had found him staring out into the night sky.

"Nothing, just lost in my thoughts." Kay sighed. "It's definitely been a wild month or so."

"At least four months in Remnant time," Winter pointed out.

"I wish we had the resources to help from this end," Kay sighed.

"You've done so much to help us already," Winter countered sternly. "The bare minimum would have been to simply give everyone a blanket and buy takeout every night. Instead, you gave each team their own room, even allowed me to sleep on your couch, and actually cook us homemade meals regularly. You actively keep us entertained and even toured us around your town! You even took us on a small holiday to the city. That's more than anyone here could have asked, Kay."

"I just… wish I could do more." Kay slumped a bit.

"We all do," Winter stepped up to his side. "Though all we can do now is wait and hope. It's something we always did back on Remnant. I'm sure you're no stranger to it either."

"Definitely not," Kay scoffed. "I just… things are complicated now. Like, even more than they were before."

"Really?" Winter asked. "Is something wrong? Did… _we_ do something wrong?"

"No!" Kay waved her down immediately. "It's… something came up. I'm under review at work."

"May I ask why?" Winter tilted her head. Kay held her gaze as he contemplated what to say.

"Do you trust me?" Kay asked. "I've been holding in this secret for a whole day, but I think I've finally found a way to bring it up to you all."

"Of course," Winter said immediately, forgetting the other important secret that previously occupied her thoughts. "It involves all of us?"

"It might as well," Kay's answer immediately sounded off alarms in the Specialist's head. "I received a call from a chairman at the college saying that I would be under investigation for being involved with military activity."

"Military activi- oh," Winter halted in her mental tracks. How many times had she flashed her ID card? To the college receptionist. To the police after the failed robbery. To Kay's own sister. "I see."

"They want me to come in for an interview," Kay continued. "And to bring you along with me for some questions."

"I-I see," Winter stammered. "I do apologize for anything that may have led to this, I can see how this may have been caused by my actions."

"Why did you use your real ID anyway?" Kay asked.

"I thought if I were to pretend to act as an agent from some sort of organization, it would provide a ring of protection for all of us," Winter answered honestly. "And it would make sense, seeing as you have almost nine armed, fully trained heroes from another world that are absolutely willing to fight and protect you."

"Protect me?" Kay repeated, confused.

"You kept us housed, fed, and safe," Winter answered. "It's the least we could do."

"Okay," Kay sighed. "Would you be okay with coming to the college with me tomorrow, then?"

"Tomorrow?" Winter asked. Kay nodded, his gaze maintained its composed nature. "Yes, I'll go with you. Perhaps Ozpin should join us?"

"That wouldn't help at all," Kay shook his head. "Imagine bringing a kid into an interrogation only for him to switch his voice and demeanor completely. That's definitely a trip to some sort of government facility for all of us. It needs to just be both of us."

"Understood," Winter replied. After a moment's contemplation, she turned to him to ask another question. Before she spoke though, she observed how peaceful he looked as he gazed out at the night sky beyond them. She allowed for another peaceful moment to pass before she spoke her mind. "Do you wish to build an alibi first?"

"That's… a good idea," her suggestion caught him off guard. "Do you have any in mind?"

"What did the chairman say they knew about you?" Winter asked, her stern demeanor returning.

"They mentioned how they saw that I was assigned to an unknown federal or military official," he recalled. "And that I was given a sort of mission that involved working with similar agents in my free time."

"We'd have to notify everyone else here, then." Winter said. "If they take the time we're out of the house to investigate everyone here, it'd be best to make sure everyone is on the same page."

"That definitely sounds good," Kay nodded along, a small smile appeared on his face. "Shall we head inside and get to work then?"

"Indeed," Winter followed him as they walked back to the house. "I think undermining the efforts of nosy and overbearing authorities would be considered a pastime for RWBY the clothes by now."

"Pfft, haha!" Kay burst out in laughter. "I think you'd be right."

**. . . . .**

"State your names and occupations, please." The man across from them asked. He wore a simple black suit and sunglasses, which Kay would have pointed out as a stupid choice seeing as they were indoors for the interview.

"Karis Grey," Kay answered first. He wore a simple light blue button-down shirt and black pants. "I'm an adjunct English teacher at Glen Plains College, as well as a working published author-slash-poet."

"Winter Schnee," Winter sat in the chair beside him, wearing a simple white blouse and blue pants. "Agent for the organization known as the Atlas Specialists."

They sat in a room that Kay assumed was a repurposed meeting room in the administrative part of the college campus. The two of them sat in the middle of the room, where the table would have been, while facing four individuals, the fourth being the chairman with whom Kay had spoken. After suits-and-sunglasses-guy there was another man and a middle-aged woman also wearing suits.

"Welcome, Mister Grey and Miss Schnee," Sunglasses said. "I am Agent Barrett of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and with me are Mister Armello and Miss Gee, investigators assigned to this case. Chairman Burns is also present. This interview will be recorded and thoroughly researched as part of the investigation surrounding Mister Grey's current situation. We ask that you answer each question truthfully. Do you acknowledge and accept these terms?"

"Yes." The two interviewees answered in unison.

"We will begin," Barrett stated. "Mr. Grey, do you understand that you are being investigated for involvement with an unknown military party that the United States does not recognize?"

"I do."

"Do you wish to make a statement about your situation?"

"Only that the matters of my situation are not of any concern to the United States's physical, financial, or social safety." Kay answered, keeping an even gaze.

"Miss Schnee, would you be the individual we should talk with in order to learn more about Mister Grey's situation?" Barrett turned to the Atlesian. "If so, please elaborate."

"Yes," Winter nodded. Her years of acting as a stoic soldier back home trained her for moments like these. "Atlas exists as an organization for certain special individuals. As of recently, some of our younger members were assigned to Glen Plains for R&R among civilians. I act as their guardian and liaison for the time we are here."

"Why was Mister Grey assigned to be your company's R&R host?" The man known as Armello asked this time. "Was there no other place they could stay?"

"Glen Plains was scouted as a low risk area," Winter answered easily. "And Karis was chosen out of his records with the US Army. He understands the needs of fellow soldiers and has been a wonderful handler so far."

"Soldiers?" Barrett's eyebrows raised immediately. "Is the Atlas company a mercenary dealer?"

"No," Winter answered calmly. "We are a completely independent company that specializes in security and peacekeeping in conflict zones. Think of us as an international militia."

"A militia that not a single country has recognized in their systems?" Barrett asked.

"That's exactly as we operate." Winter nodded. "We're still a rather small faction, teaming up with another small group known as Beacon. We work to protect civilians during times of conflict. There should be no trace of us whatsoever; we do not serve any nation's military, we serve the defenseless people of the world."

"Interesting," Barrett nodding in understanding. "And if I were to request for you to join an operation with the United States Marine Corps?"

"All of our movements go through our CO, and _only_ our CO." Winter shook her head. "You have no authority to order our teams to do anything."

"That's unfortunate, your efforts would be useful if your teams were more well known." The female agent, Gee, spoke.

"I know how politicians work, Madam Investigator," Winter countered. "The moment we become known is when the media and leaders around the world begin to paint us as enemies that don't fit their agendas. We are a purely neutral party in all conflicts, and we would like to stay that way."

"Well said," Barret agreed. "Very well, so it seems we have no way to sway you to perform for the United States, and your company's policies for civilian protection and neutrality will be recorded as confirming that you act as no active threat to the safety of our nation."

"Mister Grey," Miss Gee spoke up, catching the writer's attention. "If you are doing any of this against your will, you may speak now. Miss Schnee and the others taking part in this assignment will be apprehended and we can offer you the services of Witness Protection."

"That won't be necessary," Kay shook his head. "I am willingly hosting the individuals that have been assigned to me."

A few silent moments followed as the three investigators began to write notes on the pads in front of them. Chairman Burns simply watched on and smiled apologetically at Kay, who nodded in understanding. Kay took a deep breath and glanced over to Winter, meeting his ice-blue gaze. They could only hope the kids were doing alright.

* * *

**Heyo, Kariotic here with another update! Thanks for reading as always. Leave a comment if you feel so inclined.**

**See y'all next chapter!**


	15. Chapter 15

"State your name, please." The man in the suit asked.

"Ruby Rose," The reaper answered. She watched as the man wrote that down. She was currently sitting in Kay's office with two people in suits and sunglasses. They had knocked on the door about an hour ago, identifying themselves as agents of something called the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The other agent had the same haircut and emotionless expression on his face. She made sure to name them Suit 1 and Suit 2. Suit 1 moved on to his questions.

"What exactly do you do for a living, Miss Rose?" He asked.

"I'm a member of the Beacon peacekeeping militia company," she recalled what Winter and Kay had told them the night before. "We work to protect people in times of crisis."

"Such as?" Suit 2 piped in.

"Well, I've only been added to Beacon's active roster recently, so I've only done a couple security-type operations," Ruby answered. She did her best to emulate all the cool spy stuff she used to see in Spruce Willis films back home. What would a badass, superspy say? "Most, if not all of my work has been surveillance and recon."

"With what type of gear?" Came the question. Thankfully, Ren, Winter, and Kay made sure to find a way to hide their _real_ weapons somewhere. It was so well hidden that not even she knew!

"I primarily work with a sniper rifle," Ruby cringed on the inside after referring to her beloved Crescent Rose as just another sniper rifle. She made a mental note to give it extra love during the next polishing. "I scout for perimeter threats and alert my team if any issues pop up."

"You're also the second youngest of the group, as you've told me," Suit 1 pointed out. "What age do prospects for Beacon start training?"

"Well, my mom was apparently really into field missions back in the day," Ruby answered with an earnest smile. It definitely was the truth. "So I guess you could say I was inspired to join from a pretty early age."

"Your mother was in the armed forces?" Suit 2 asked.

"No, she was one of the greatest members the Beacon company ever had," Ruby retorted immediately. "I've been working ever since to become the same kind of protector as she was."

"Was?" Suit 1 stopped writing for a moment.

"She was killed in action," she answered. Saying the words brought a sour taste to her mouth, but that is what Kay had told them would be the best part; all they had to do was translate their personal experiences on Remnant to the context of neutral, peacekeeping militia. The only solid point they had to maintain was that they were only there for relaxation and recuperation, which also wasn't too far off from what the truth was. Except for the whole, waiting for a portal to return home thing, that is.

"Mmm," Suit 1 hummed as he wrote down another note. "If we were to research your names and appearances in our records, would you show up?"

"No," Ruby shook her head. "The closest thing you'd get is a bunch of characters from some popular internet cartoon from a few years back. Other than that, we don't exist."

"I see," Suit 1 nodded. He clicked the stop button on a small recorder on the desk."Thank you Miss Rose, that will be all for now."

Suit 2 held the door open as she left the door, allowing her to return to the group in the living room couch and floor. They were dead silent as four other agents in suits walked around the house, probably scouring for any evidence of terrorist activities.

At least, that's what Winter had said.

Either way, Kay and Winter made sure to tell them to stay silent and do their best to remain unprovoked. They may use any words and actions and take them out of context to paint them as bad guys. And they totally weren't! Ren was told to enter the office next, which caused Ruby to take a mental sigh of relief. At least he would be level-headed through it all.

"How'd it go?" Yang whispered as she sat down next to her.

"Alright, I guess," Ruby answered. "Not sure why we're being questioned."

"Did they ask anything about Kay?" Yang asked. Ruby shook her head. "That's weird, they asked me about him."

"Excuse me," one of the agents walked up to the group. "Would there happen to be a basement in this house?"

"Not that we've been made aware of," Weiss answered for the group, while others simply shook their heads. "We've only been on this floor."

That much was true. To the knowledge of only Winter and Kay, Roman had very kindly taken their weapons and his them away in his home. Kay stated that the editor wasn't mentioned in the investigation, so he most likely wouldn't be tracked down or investigated. Hopefully, that is.

"I was asked about whether Kay and Winter were engaged in some sort of relationship," Weiss huffed after the man walked out of earshot. "As if I didn't get enough jokes about it from you lot, I had to answer them with as straight a face as possible."

"Someone's in denial!" Nora sang.

"Nora, please!" Weiss hissed. "It's already hard enough when they realized I was Winter's sister. They kept badgering me about our commanding officer."

"And what did you say?" Jaune asked.

"Classified," Weiss answered. "As it is."

"Right," Jaune nodded, having done the same.

"Did they ask where any of us were from?" Nora popped in.

"No," Weiss shook her head. She glanced at the agents that were wandering around the house, no doubt listening in to their conversation. "I would only hope our CO hears about this eventually. Some things will need to change about all this."

"I hope Kay's alright," Ruby said, making sure the agents heard her. "He's been so good to us."

"He'll be fine," Yang dismissed with a cheeky grin. "He's got Winter with him."

"They'll never find your body, Xiao-Long, I swear." Weiss glared daggers at the blonde, who simply shrugged.

"I just mean that he has our superior officer to support him," Yang clarified with a wink. "He's still a civilian, no matter his background."

Ren was eventually released from the office as the two interviewers had finished their rounds through the group. The man that Ruby had dubbed Suit 1 walked over to them in the living room, his expression hidden behind his sunglasses. He made a show of looking over each of them, and when that didn't garner any sort of reaction, he spoke.

"None of you are in trouble," he said. "We simply wanted to know why there were members of an unknown militant force spending their R&R assignment in such a specifically out of the way place."

"Well, you just answered the question." Ruby replied immediately, catching the man off guard.

"Yeah," Nora added. "We're unknown, and would like to remain unknown, like our company's policy goes."

"And while we may be trained in combat, we haven't left this house other than to help our host get groceries," Weiss added.

"We have no plans or objectives that place anyone in the town, state, or country in any danger," Yang continued. "We're all just here to relax."

"So you say," the man continued to attempt to intimidate the group, glaring at them through his sunglasses. "Hm, allow me to ask one more question, this time to the whole group."

"Has Karis Gray done anything to you or others that would warrant any sort of physical force?" The man asked. "Has he done anything against your consent or knowledge?"

"Are you _seriously_ asking if he's taken advantage of us?" Jaune asked.

"No," Ruby stood up immediately. Her friends watched her closely, readying themselves if she decided to act rashly. "He hasn't. Kay's been a very generous host, even giving up his beds and couch to us while he chooses to sleep on the floor. He doesn't have to cook breakfast for us, but does so anyway. He pretty much lets us have free reign in the house and brings us entertainment either digitally or from the library. He's been nothing but warm and kind to us, where you people have just been badgering us over nothing!"

"She's absolutely right," Weiss stood by her partner. The group made their own similar outcries from their spots in the room. "The fact that you would insinuate otherwise is absolutely disgusting."

"It seems I may have frayed a few nerves there," the man did not sound so apologetic when he said that, but he stepped aside anyway to join his colleagues. He placed a single white card on the couch, next to Yang and made his way to the door. Before he and the other agents left, he turned to say, "I have left my information on that card with you. If anything suspicious pops up, do not hesitate to let us know. Otherwise, we will be in touch with your superior."

The door closed with finality as the students took a collective sigh of relief. Nora and Jaune watched the agents slowly depart through the window. As directed by Kay the night before, they made sure to act normal, but avoid speaking about anything Remnant-related; they may have planted secret microphones around the place. With how the agents randomly wandered around the house, there was definitely a chance of that.

"What now?" Blake asked, looking over to Oscar. He had stayed in control the entire time, and with the potential of being bugged, he would have to remain in control for an undetermined amount of time. His interview took the longest, though it mostly pertained as to his age and why he was with the group if he only had a civilian background compared to the rest of them. He had given the story that he was a part of a refugee camp and wanted to help the Atlas and Beacon companies in their noble paths in protecting the defenseless people of the world, and so on and so forth. "They're gone, right?"

"Yup," Jaune said from the window, glancing outside again. "All four black cars are gone."

"Blake," Ruby turned to her teammate. "Do you see anything around us?"

All it took was a quick glance to the globe on the mantle, a shiny glint in the kitchen for Blake to nod confidently back to her leader. There was also no doubt that they had planted one in each of their bedrooms.

"So what should we do now?" Jaune asked, rejoining the group in the living room.

"For now," Ruby stepped forward and grabbed the TV remote. "We wait for Kay and Winter. I think we can handle being normal for a little bit more."

**Meanwhile…**

"Mister Gray, has there been any property or personal damage caused by this visiting group that would warrant our assistance?"

"As I said before and will say again Miss Gee," Kay did his best to hold in an aggravated sigh. "The kids have done nothing wrong, no one has been hurt." He stared directly into the woman's eyes as he continued. "I am not in need of any protective services."

"I would appreciate it if my young colleagues weren't treated as volatile, hostile agents." Winter cut in. "We were all trained to keep the peace and to never interfere directly with countries' affairs. We would not jeopardize ourselves by acting rashly wherever we went."

"So it would seem," Agent Barrett nodded. He glanced between the two adults sitting before him. "How would the two of you describe your relationship?"

"Relationship?" Winter repeated, clearly unamused.

"You two are the sole adults," Barrett shrugged. "I'm simply speculating that Mister Gray may have been chosen for a different reason."

"I did not choose Karis as our host, our commanding officer did," Winter answered, her ice cold glare shooting straight into the man's sunglasses. "I also arrived after my subordinates without any intel as to who Karis was. Regardless, our interactions have been purely professional throughout our time here."

"Mister Gray, any comments to add?"

"None, Agent Barrett," Kay shook his head. "I'm just a host for her and the kids. Any step over that would be a violation against their practices, as well as downright rude of me."

"If you're looking for any minor reason to set a charge of any kind with us, you'd be sorely mistaken for trying," Winter said. "I have my subordinates on their best behavior."

"I see," A sudden beep caused Barrett to glance at his smartwatch as he received a message. After writing something down, he stood from his seat, which everyone else followed suit. "It would seem our time here is up, Mister Gray and Miss Schnee. As it so seems, there is no way for us to arrest you at the moment, but do keep in mind that we will be in touch. I suggest that your quiet, peacekeeping ways do stay that way, or our forces will clash. Regardless of how well trained your members are, Miss Schnee, I can guarantee that this conflict is one you would want to avoid. You are dismissed."

It was a long, silent walk back to the car before the two of them let out a sigh of relief. Kay wiped sweat off his forehead with his sleeve as he glanced at Winter, who was pinching the bridge of her nose in annoyance. She let out another deep sigh as she met Kay's gaze.

"Are the federal agents of your world always so annoyingly smug?" Winter asked. "Even if they don't know what they're talking about?"

"This is my first encounter with them," Kay looked in his rearview mirrors to see if anyone was moving behind them before he pulled out of his spot. "Are they like this on Remnant?"

"Pesky, arrogant, and hungry to use anything and everything to their advantage against the Atlas military?" Winter rolled her eyes. "Then, yes."

"Being Ironwood's right hand must've meant you spoke with them a lot," Kay said, focusing on the road ahead of them. "And I'm sure the Atlesian Council is just as aggravating to deal with."

"You wouldn't know the half of it," Winter muttered. "Ostentatious bastards and military antiques that want everything their way, refusing to budge at the mere mention of financial reforms."

"Sounds plenty familiar, to be honest." Kay sighed, letting the moment pass. As they drove back to the house, the golden arches caught Kay's attention."We should probably pick up some dinner on the way home."

"Please," Winter nodded, the mental exhaustion hitting her already.

**. . . . .**

"What's the plan?" Kay asked as Winter casually wandered through the house with a glass of red wine in her hand. She made sure not to look directly at the planted bugs that the agents had placed, rather, she simply perused the items around it for a while and observed the plants in her peripheral vision.

"We simply wait for our next commands," Winter said, taking a sip. "As for the feds, I believe we're fine. They won't be able to watch us."

_The bugs are microphones, not cameras_. Kay mentally noted. That meant that they needed to maintain a sort of code. He pointed at the bedrooms and office doors with a raised eyebrow. Winter answered with a silent nod; they had indeed bugged the other rooms as well. The kids already seemed to realize, subtly making sure they were careful with how they talk over dinner.

"Thank you, Winter." Kay said as the Specialist finished her rounds and returned to the kitchen counter. "I wouldn't have been able to handle today without your support."

"Of course," Winter nodded and smiled in kind. A peaceful moment passed between the two as they sipped on their wine. "It's nothing compared to what you've done for us."

"It's just… so much of an inconvenience right when we managed to make progress on communication." Kay said carefully. "Your CO is going to be pretty pissed if the feds keep interfering."

"No kidding," Winter played along. "So, now?"

"We wait." Kay raised his wine glass in the space between them. "Crisis averted?"

"A victory for now," Winter's smile widened as she reciprocated his motion.

**. . . . .**

In the bustling area of Bushwick, Brooklyn, a woman was barking into her phone as she made her way into her home. As she passed through her mudroom, several pictures of a stoically posed family stared back at her. More portraits followed her down the hallway, each with a young man or woman wearing a variation of a green uniform.

"I cannot believe you would have me drive out in the middle of nowhere, young lady," she sighed. "What is so urgent that I would be interested in staying a night in Glen Plain's of all places?"

"Because Mother," a young woman's voice answered through speakerphone. "I think Karis may have gotten involved in something dangerous."

"Maya," the older woman chided as she moved about her home. "If your brother has made any decision on his own, I'm sure he'll be fine without us. He's made it clear by moving out there."

"Not when his decision leads to being involved with some sort of unknown military group!" Maya's outburst surprised the woman. She hadn't sounded this concerned about her older brother since they were children. If this situation was as legitimate as Maya had said, perhaps it was time to take personal action. "Mother, please!"

So her beloved, estranged son had truly found himself in quite the mess, hadn't he? The woman sighed as she made her way to a particularly large and well-kept wardrobe near the rear of her home. She opened the door to reveal a handful of pristine uniforms from her glory days, one of which she pulled out and admired with one hand while still holding the phone in the other hand. She took a deep breath and leaned towards her phone.

"I'll rescue your silly older brother, Maya," her tone was cold, calculating. "Now, tell me more about this Winter woman."

* * *

**Heyo, Kariotic here with another update! Things are starting to get pretty exciting, aren't they? The Feds, Atlas' progress, Kay's Mother...**

**We'll see what happens next time of Time in Pages Lost! See you next chapter. Leave a comment if you feel inclined, I love reading them.**


	16. Chapter 16

"Good morning everyone," Kay greeted as the teams of adolescents grouped in the kitchen for breakfast. They reciprocated the greeting, as Ren passed out plates of scrambled eggs and ham on toast for everyone. Winter passed a jug of orange juice over to Oscar. Kay looked over the scene playing out in front of him; if someone were to say two months ago that he'd be playing host to a bunch of characters from one of his favorite series growing up, he'd call them crazy. He made sure that Nora and Yang got their extra helping of eggs and took a sip of his usual morning tea. "I'm sure everyone has some thoughts after yesterday's debacle."

"It's definitely a doozy," Nora muttered through her eggs. Oscar had sent Winter a message saying how Ozpin was very vocal in his brain during the interview, but he did his best to answer as himself to avoid seeming suspicious.

"There are still no changes in our assignments," Winter stated, purposefully choosing those words. "We are to remain here until his word."

"Got it," Yang nodded, the others muttering assent.

"That being said, everything should be back to normal," Kay continued. "Other than my current change in job status, you have nothing to worry about.

"What?" Ruby cried out, shocked.

"Due to the nature of the investigation," Kay answered the group. "I am no longer a teacher at Glen Plains College. However, I am still getting a good amount of pay from my older books, and Roman says my newest poetry book is going through the rounds of editing and publishing now."

"How long have you been let go?" Oscar asked, pointing to his head; Ozpin had asked the question.

"A few days ago," Kay said. "I told Winter before we went in for the interview. I'm doing okay financially, though. Should be able to rely for a while before having to delve into my actual savings. And even then, I should be getting decent income from the next book release."

"That's good, I guess." Yang said. "Anything we can do to help?"

"Nah," Kay waved her off dismissively. "Just relax and do what you guys wanna do."

"More video games?" Yang shrugged. Ruby and Jaune seemed to like that idea.

"I really don't have much of a problem with more reading," Blake added.

"I wouldn't mind participating in more leisure activities," Winter said. "It has been a rather stressful week for all of us."

"Ya gonna join us, Kay?" Nora asked eagerly.

"I can't," the writer shook his head. "I've got an appointment today."

"Sunday," Winter finished the thought for him. "Of course."

"So while I'm out," Kay circled a finger in the air above his head, gesturing in the general direction of the bugs in his home. "Be good, alright?"

"Yes, _dad_." Yang snickered. "We'll be on our best behavior."

"I'll make sure nothing goes awry, Kay." Winter assured him.

"Thanks, _mom_." Nora added, ignoring the glare from Weiss. .

Beyond that, breakfast finished in its usual manner, with Ren and Nora cleaning the kitchen and the others splitting off through the house to their usual pastimes. Blake and Oscar took refuge in Kay's office and began reading while the others either sat in the living room, chatting animatedly as another video game started up.

Winter watched as Kay slipped out of the house silently after having changed for his therapist appointment. It was as he said earlier that morning; everything would be just fine as long as nothing happened. She took a mental sigh of relief as she remembered that Glen Plains was literally the most peaceful town she'd ever been in; what could possibly go wrong?

**. . . . .**

A few hours later, her query was answered. She had participated in a few rounds of card games with Weiss, Ren, and Oscar before departing to the kitchen for some water. As she walked back to the group, she heard the _beep_ of a car's locking alarm, and moved toward the window by the front door to see a single middle-aged woman in a black uniform with several medals displayed over her left breast. She wore her graying, dark brown hair in a short ponytail. However, the most pressing part of her appearance, it was the black name tag on the woman's right side: Gray. Winter's eyes widened as she read the tag and quickly turned to the living room.

"Everyone," Winter's stern expression and authoritative tone caused everyone to freeze and look at her. Once she realized she had their attention, the Specialist continued. "We have company."

"The Feds again?" Yang asked, as Ruby jumped to turn off the game console and television.

"No," Winter shook her head. "This… this might be worse."

_Ding-dong!_

Winter held up a hand, silently telling them to stay still and silent. Hopefully, their visitor would be kind enough to realize the absence of a car in the driveway. The Specialist moved as quietly as she could, making sure her steps made little noise as she walked towards the door. The visitor rang the doorbell a second time just as Winter looked through the peephole. She saw no sign of annoyance or irritation from the older woman, just an expression of stern determination, like she knew exactly what was going on. Just to prove it, she rang the bell again.

"You know," the woman's voice carried through the wooden barrier. "It's quite rude to pretend that no one is home. Especially when you aren't the owners of the home. I'm well aware that Karis isn't here." That statement caused Winter's eyes to widen once more. "I am simply here to talk. I mean no harm, as I know those buffoons from the Bureau must have given you all a hard time already."

The elder Schnee looked to the rest of the group behind her to gauge what her next move was. Weiss shook her head while the rest sort of shrugged or gestured noncommittally. Winter sighed as she turned to the door again.

"It's also even ruder to stall against the _mother_ of the man who is hosting you," the woman added with an edge of annoyance finally coming through her tone. The soft collective gasp from the group echoed at the revelation of the guest's identity. "So if you were smart, you would let me in."

There was some underlying threat there, Winter assumed. This woman would not have come to Kay's house in the military dress uniform if not to make some sort of statement. She juggled the factors of the moment in her head: Kay was currently out of the house for therapy, Kay had also established his estranged relationship with his family, there were _ten_ people being hosted in his home, and now his mother came knocking to investigate after somehow gaining the intel of the situation. Winter's eye twitched before she reigned herself in before unlocking the front door's mechanisms and opened it to reveal the woman standing behind it.

"Why hello there," the older woman wore a smug smirk. Her eyes lit up as she recognized the Atlesian. "_You_ must be Winter."

The sheer aura of the visiting woman forced Winter step back and allow her into the house, where she saw the rest of the visiting party. Winter watched as the woman that called herself Kay's mother surveyed the interior with a sharp gaze that caused the children to flinch lightly. That was before they regained their composure and held the older woman's gaze. Winter silently thanked the Brothers themselves that Blake had quickly found a knit cap at some point to hide her Faunus ears.

"Very interesting," she mused aloud, turning back to Winter. "So, you are the group that my son has been hosting. I see…"

"How did you come to know about Kay's situation?" Winter asked, closing and locking the door behind her. "We weren't aware that he had told anyone."

"My daughter, Maya, made me aware of it," Kay's mother answered. "Though I couldn't be more confused as to how Karis of all people had been chosen for this task. Is that a question you would know the answer to, Miss Winter?"

"Yes, it would," Winter nodded. Her blue eyes glanced downward to check the woman's military rank. "Would you like some tea, Major Gray?"

"That would be preferred, yes." Major Gray strode ahead of Winter to the kitchen, where the latter woman began prepping the tea kettle with water and turning up the fire. She turned to see the elder woman looking at her with keen scrutiny. "Hm…"

"Yes, ma'am?" Winter held her composure, though the peanut gallery in the living room did not help at all.

"Maya did say you were held quite an intimidating presence," Major Gray said, looking Winter up and down. "You have impeccable posture and do not appear to be visibly shaken by me. Do you often work with your superior officers?"

"I am the right-hand woman of our commanding officer," Winter nodded stoically. "I wear that badge proudly."

"And did you join your company because of your family?" the Major asked, having glanced over at Weiss.

"In a way, yes." Winter answered truthfully. Weiss nodded at her with an understanding smile as the familiar story came up once more. "I joined to escape my family."

"Escape?" Mrs. Gray repeated. The kettle whistle went off, upon which Winter quickly prepared a cup of Kay's black tea for the guest. Mrs. Gray took a sip and replaced the mug on the counter, showing no sign of pleasure or disdain of the drink; she was here for answers. "How so?"

"My family's business was a cesspool for politics," Winter supplied. "That is to say, it was constantly hammered with accusations of corruption, greed, and racial discrimination. The fact that my father wished to drag me into that mess without any concern for my own desires was the final straw. So, I studied and trained to eventually rise to the position I am now: a Specialist Officer for the Atlas Company."

"Wouldn't your father know what's best for his children?" Mrs. Gray asked. "Surely, he was simply trying to coerce you into a better life that he had built, especially since it involved the family business."

"Not when the accusations of corruption, greed, and _extreme_ racial discrimination were true," Winter countered calmly. She wasn't upset at this woman, she simply wasn't aware of what their world was."I wanted nothing to do with the company and was happy to sever my ties with the company. I am where I want to be, and I am in control of my own life, my own happiness."

"Hm, how… cute." Major Gray mused as she took another sip. She glanced back at the group on the rug. "I assume the other white-haired girl there is your youngest sister." Winter nodded. "Does she have similar ideals?"

"I learned the truth behind our father's company," Weiss stood to answer for herself. "Now that he has been arrested for his crimes back home, I will be able to start making reforms to the company's policies and personally making sure that it sticks to those changes. I will not stand as a puppet on strings, I am going to use my power to make our company the best it could be."

"So young, and still following orders," Mrs. Gray nodded. "Yet independent enough to see the stark reality and have the drive to change it." The older woman sighed as she looked to the others. "I wish Karis had the drive to do the same."

"But he does!" Ruby shot up to defend their host. "The fact that he's still doing his best, no matter what he does, proves that he does!"

"How so?" Major Gray asked. Winter spoke up this time.

"Kay and I have many conversations regarding current events and certain political views," she said. "While he wouldn't make a good soldier, he definitely makes a good leader as well as a good person."

"Why wouldn't he be a good soldier?" Major Gray asked. "I'm sure you all know by now that he was discharged from the military. Is that not a shame? A disappointment seeing as he had wasted years of training all to toss it aside."

Ren placed a hand on Yang and Nora's shoulders as they began to rise as well. Jaune assisted with an arm outstretched at their middles to stop them from advancing. Blake and Oscar, however, simply glared at the woman that called herself Kay's mother. The Major looked around, meeting eyes with everyone else in the room.

"What, am I in hostile territory now?" Major Gray asked, rolling her eyes. "My son could have been an amazing soldier and rose through the ranks like you did, Winter."

"A 'good soldier' is someone who follows orders and only those orders," Winter clarified, her tone gaining an edge to it. "Kay has his beliefs and his own ways to lead. He's a great, compassionate teacher as well as a talented writer. Do you not value those as important things in his life?"

"I value strength and determination," Gray answered coolly. "I do not value abandoning a path when one has committed to it for years. I do not value the estrangement that had grown between us. I valued my son when he took the path of a righteous soldier, but when he gave up, I was simply disappointed. Karis is extremely capable of greatness, but he decided the effort wasn't worth it."

"He suffers from a mental illness that has a massively negative impact on his way of thinking and living," Winter countered. "To reach such standards of 'perfection' at the expense of one's own health, I'm quite relieved that he's still _alive_ to this day."

"Hm," Major Gray took Winter's last line with a sip of her tea. She appeared to be deep in thought. "Callous as you may think of me, I would not have gotten any pleasure out of hearing my son dying before me while I was on active duty, I simply wanted the best for him."

"But did you ever allow him to make those decisions on his own?" Winter asked. "Did he ever have the chance to discover what he wanted in life?"

"He…" Major Gray took a moment to recount. "He did always enjoy his little stories and poems. I thought nothing of it than a hobby to keep his mind busy."

"He turned that hobby into a career," Blake said, causing everyone to turn to her. "And he'll be publishing another poetry book soon."

"Is that right?" Major Gray asked, with an eyebrow raised. She looked at the group once more before turning back to Winter. The Specialist was leaning back against the counter with her arms crossed. "Interesting."

"What?" Winter asked, surprised by the levity in the mother's tone. A beat passed as the older woman looked at each of them carefully.

"How complete strangers were able to not only trust in my son, but to defend him so loyally." Gray completed her thought. "I feel he would not have done the same for us."

The idea seemed to bring the group down to a somber atmosphere. As cold as she may have come off, this lady was still Kay's mother. Even Yang had managed to eventually build a somewhat minor bridge of mutual respect with Raven with the help of Qrow and Blake on both sides. Ren and Nora looked down sadly; they were each other's only family for years before Beacon. Blake noticed how Winter was the only one not completely downtrodden by Mrs. Gray's words.

"That's where you're wrong," Winter stepped forward with a gentle tone. "Kay has been visiting Maya every Christmas in the city, making sure she's okay. He made an effort to keep some sort of connection with his little sister, but Maya's attitude towards him strained that motivation for years."

"Maya did tell me that Karis visited her every once in a while," Mrs. Gray swept a hand through her graying hair. "He… did make the effort to keep an eye on his little sister. I can at least appreciate that. She looked up to him so much growing up. I suppose losing him after he was discharged was too much."

"So she decided to take on the mantle of pride herself," Weiss finished for the Major, who nodded. "She saw how proud being in the Army made you, and wanted to make it up to you."

"And in doing so, she adopted the unhealthiest form of dedication to her self-assigned duty: toxic exclusivity." Winter continued. "Even go so far as to label her own older brother as weak and misguided when he's anything but."

A short silence filled the room as Mrs. Gray absorbed those words. She finished her tea and looked into Winter's eyes with a curious gaze. If Winter could place specific emotions in it, she would say she saw a mix of weariness and determination. Definitely a curious combination, the Specialist noted as she met the elder woman's gaze.

"You all refer to him as 'Kay,' I see," she spoke after another moment of silent contemplation. "Does that mean you all think of him as an acquaintance?"

"Friend," Ruby said, nodding enthusiastically.

"And you, Winter?" Mrs. Gray asked. "You are the sole other member in the group that appears to be in the same age group as my son. You see him as a… friend?"

"I see him as a colleague," Winter answered, making sure not to answer immediately. "I trust him to do what is right in his current position as our host."

"And as a person?"

"As a person?" Winter repeated, caught off guard by Mrs. Gray's follow up question. "Kay is a reliable, kind, understanding person who is willing to put himself before others. We count ourselves especially lucky to find ourselves in his care during our stay here."

"Hm, a sterile answer," Mr. Gray scoffed as she looked Winter up and down again. "You've nothing but a professional relationship with him, then."

"Of course," Winter refused to show any sort of evidence that her question caught her off guard. "I have the utmost respect for Kay, and would never overstep any boundaries. Our stay is only temporary, after all."

"A shame," Mrs. Gray tutted after a solid half-minute of staring straight into Winter's eyes. "Kay would definitely benefit from a much longer connection. Any chance you might be able to recruit him?"

"We do not simply recruit civilians, Major," Winter replied.

"Did you not already recognize Karis's military experience?" Mrs. Gray asked. "I will gladly transfer over his West Point records over to you, and you'll find he was, and still is, an exceptional candidate for your team."

"From what I've gathered from cohabitation with the man, I'd very much keep Kay as far away from our line of work as possible." Winter answered. "He has his own role to play in this world, and I'd rather not disturb him by placing him among our ranks."

"Then why not give him a non-combat role?" Mrs. Gray pressed. "I'm sure he'd very much excel at any administrative position."

"I…" Winter sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. "At the end of the day, all of those choices are to be made by our CO. And seeing as he is already aware of our situation and Kay, he would not press our host into anything other than what is already assigned."

"Hmm," Major Gray nodded. She looked around the house once more, her gaze lingering on certain spots that Winter recalled as the bug locations. The older woman sighed. "I would very much prefer if my son were able to return with you, I feel his life would be much better."

"Much better than it is now?" Nora asked.

"Being kept under federal surveillance and hosting so many people in a house meant for a _small_ family," Mrs. Gray noted aloud. "If there is one thing I know about my son, it's that he enjoys his anonymity. I would imagine he would have plenty of that with your group."

"Why are you trying so hard to have him join us?" Yang asked.

"Why are you so against it?" the Major countered "You would have another trusted colleague for your company, plus he and Winter would make a great pair."

"Excuse me?" Winter and Weiss asked in unison. Nora snickered behind the younger heiress's back, but went mostly ignored during the outburst.

"I simply mean that the two of you would be quite effective in terms of leadership," Mrs. Gray clarified, though the glint in her eye suggested an ulterior motive. "Karis has always been very good with people, and as you say, is quite capable of inspiring others with compassion and understanding. Mix that with Miss Winter's own demeanor of strict efficiency and headstrong determination, and I think the entire world would recognize you for your efforts in leading what would be a very effective militia company."

"A-ah, I see." Winter calmed down, though she jumped once more as the front door was swiftly unlocked and opened. Silence fell among them as Kay entered his home and immediately took stock of the situation. His tired brown eyes scanned the youths in the living room before resting for a moment on his mother and Winter in the kitchen. He sighed deeply as he spoke.

"Mother," he greeted her reservedly. "Welcome to my home. Is there any reason why you're interrogating the people taking their well-deserved recovery period in my home?"

"Hello Karis, it has been some time." If the man's cold greeting offended her, she made no sign of it. In fact, Blake saw a small smile appear on the woman's face. "It's good to see you again."

"Nice of you to visit," Kay agreed, removing his jacket and throwing it onto the couch. "Why are you here, though?"

"A little birdie told me of your predicament and I decided to scope out the situation myself." His mother answered honestly.

"Little birdie?" Kay repeated. A beat passed before he realized. "Maya."

"Maya," Mrs. Gray nodded. "She told me how you were involved with a paramilitary operation, and that Winter was keeping you on some sort of leash."

"And what're your thoughts of my situation, mother?" Kay asked, arms crossed.

"From what I gather, you do not seem to be in any immediate danger," Mrs. Gray began, gesturing towards the group of well-trained students who would technically qualify as war veterans at this point. "You are clearly not restricted by them, and they even seem to genuinely defend you when I pressed them. It is evident that you are trusted to keep them safe while they are here."

"And your conclusion?" Kay raised an eyebrow.

"Maya's rather blunt panic and exasperation may have over-exaggerated the risk of the situation," she answered. "As long as you are not harmed by them, and guard them well, I see no reason to intervene."

"Intervene?" Weiss asked. "How?"

"My mother, the woman known as Major Clarissa Gray," Kay turned to the group. "Is a decorated and well-respected veteran from her years in service. As such, she's made many connections in certain… groups that would definitely be capable of bringing you all into the public eye with the intent of harm."

"And with my thorough investigation here," Mrs. Gray continued for him. "I believe there is no reason for me to do that."

"Thorough investigation?" Nora popped up behind Weiss. "All she did was talk smack about you and insinuate some sorta romance between you and Winter."

Kay shot a look towards his mother, who simply shrugged and looked back at her son with an expression that asked, 'did you expect anything different from me?' The writer sighed as he looked over to Winter. If she was flustered by the second half of Nora's sentence she didn't show it.

"I was actually asking them to recruit you," Mrs. Gray said. "They spoke so highly of you, and I know you are quite capable as an individual, so the natural progression would be for you to join their organization and team up with them specifically."

"That's not how it works."

"You'd also do very well to partner up with Miss Winter."

"No, mother."

"Why not?"

"Because, no."

"That's not an acceptable answer."

"It's a perfectly acceptable answer for an extremely complicated situation!" Kay shot back. Winter watched the two banter as she came to a realization.

"You two… don't actually dislike each other." Winter said. "I thought there would be more contempt between the two of you."

"Oh please, we disagree constantly over what we think is right for the future," Mrs. Gray replied. "I think he would have done splendidly as an officer in the Army, but if the world sees it fit for him to be a teacher and a writer instead, then who am I to fight that?"

"We've made peace," Kay hesitated for a moment. "Well, a semblance of peace over the matter."

"Just because it works does not mean I'm happy about it." Mrs. Gray huffed. "However, what matters at the end of the day is that my children are doing well."

"So… the toxicity in the family," Winter continued. "That… comes from Maya?"

"I honestly don't know where exactly she got it," Mrs. Gray supposed. "I definitely pushed the two of them towards joining the Army with quite a bit of emphasis."

"You weren't exactly present for a lot of it because of deployment," Kay pointed out. "So it was a lot of us just struggling to figure ourselves out. Maya wanted your love and attention, like the amount of attention and pride you showed me when I first joined the Army. I'm beginning to think that she's trying to make up for it, but it's enveloping her very way of thinking."

"Sounds like an advanced form of Imposter Syndrome, but I'm not an expert on that." Winter suggested.

"I'll not pretend to understand the subject of mental illnesses," Mrs. Gray sighed, looking at Kay. "I've already struggled for years to understand and accept the reasons for your decisions to leave the Army and separate yourself from that world completely. This… I'm not sure I would be able to fix what Maya has done."

"It's led her to call my employers, have me let go, and investigated by the Feds for the situation I'm in." Kay gestured to the group. "If anything, Maya is the source of our current predicament, and I'd like to find a way for these guys to get home as quickly as possible for their safety."

"So why don't they?" Major Gray asked. Kay froze, realizing what he had said. "Why doesn't their CO command them to return?"

"There are… communication issues on their end," Winter answered carefully. "And the solution to those issues will take some time before we can be called back. Until then, we can only wait."

"I see," Mrs. Gray nodded in understanding. Her eyes swept the room once more, until they landed on Yang. "What happened to your arm, young lady?"

"Oh, this?" Yang raised her metal prosthetic arm. "I lost my arm in an accident. The Atlas company provided me with it."

"Incredible," Mrs. Gray remarked. "An independent, neutral militia with such resources would be an invaluable asset to any nation's forces."

"Which is why I'd very much appreciate subtlety when dealing with this subject, Mom," Kay dropped the formality when he addressed his mother this time. "I've been tasked with housing and caring for them. They don't need any more attention when their own situation is already complicated."

"Alright, alright!" Major Gray chided softly. "I won't get involved. The younger ones listen to you and you obviously have the respect of your peer in Winter. I can speak to Maya, but it won't be much to slow her down if she puts her mind to exposing you all as some sort of danger."

"Your support is greatly appreciated, Major," Winter nodded with a kind smile. "The protection of our younger operatives is our greatest priority."

"I see that," Mrs. Gray nodded. After a few minutes of silent solace, she looked to the Specialist once more. "Are you sure you can't recruit Karis into your team?"

"Mom, no." Kay answered for Winter, though the Specialist could see that the Major was simply asking in jest, shooting a wink at the Atlesian soldier. Kay asked, "Are you staying for dinner, mom?"

"If it's not too big of a problem," she shrugged. "It's a bit of a trip back home for me, you know."

About forty-five minutes later, Major Gray was partaking in the usual weekend dinner of Chinese delivery. The mood had shifted significantly since her original entry, with the students asking the older woman about Kay's upbringing. As cold as his mother could come off at times, she did pull off the doting role quite well.

"Do you have any pictures of Kay when he was younger?" Ruby queried after swallowing a bite of her food. In response, Major Gray swiftly retrieved her phone and opened her Photo Album app, sliding to reveal a preteen Karis Gray looking uncomfortable in a suit.

"This is him before his first piano recital," she said, letting Weiss take the phone from her. "He played wonderfully, if I remember correctly."

"I enjoyed playing piano," Kay told Winter beside him. "Not so much being on stage."

"And this," Mrs. Gray leaned over to swipe across several more photos to a familiar picture. Kay stood in a sharp attention stance and gave the camera an emotionless expression. "Is from his first week as a cadet at West Point."

"Pffft," Yang snickered. "Your hair, dude!"

"Yeah, yeah," Kay rolled his eyes. "I don't exactly rock a buzz cut, I know."

"You look different in uniform," Blake noted. "Much more… serious."

"He looks kinda badass," Jaune shrugged.

"I second that!" Nora nodded, her mouth full of noodles.

"He excelled in his studies and was a quite skilled sharpshooter," Major Gray recalled as she pointedly passed her phone over to the Specialist. "Winter?"

The young soldier took the phone in her hands and Kay leaned over a bit to examine the picture as well. Staring blankly back at him was an eighteen year old Kay, who wanted to follow in his mother's footsteps. The young man in the picture looked both focused and distracted at the same time, somehow.

"You look like every other cadet back home," Winter remarked. "Wide-eyed and sleep-deprived."

"Sounds accurate to me," Kay nodded as the phone was returned to its owner. "We'd wake up as early as dawn to start training."

"Sounds rough," Jaune balked at the idea. Kay simply shrugged.

"You either got used to it or got yelled at to wake up every morning," he explained. "I managed to get used to it pretty quick."

Dinner continued and finished with a much more relaxed atmosphere than the house had earlier that day. Kay and Winter walked Mrs. Gray back to her car. Very little was said between mother and son as the Major departed, although the mother placed a hand on Kay's shoulder momentarily, whispering a message just for him. She turned to Winter with a curt nod.

"Please keep my son safe, Winter." Major Gray said. "And I do genuinely hope you reconsider having him join your company. From the chemistry I see among you, it would only benefit everyone involved."

"I will," Winter answered.

"To which part?" Kay asked. The Specialist's reply seemed to sate his mother, as the older woman entered her car and pulled away from the house. Kay gave a simple departing wave towards the departing vehicle before the two walked back to the house.

"Well that was definitely a thing." Kay sighed, dragging a hand down his face. "I wish she had at least sent a word of warning."

"What did she tell you?" Winter asked.

"She said if I ever needed any help with the finances, she'd pitch in." Kay said. "Knowing my mother, I would be able to refuse that offer even if I tried."

"Hmm," Winter hummed, watching the man mull over his own thoughts. A sudden flash from inside caught their attention. "What?"

The two dashed back into the house and found the kids huddled around the living room again. Ruby held up another metal cube.

"Winter, Kay!" Oscar caught the adults' eyes. "Look what just popped up!"

"They've managed to find a consistent power similar to... the original event." Winter paused, remembering the bugs around the house. "It could be a part of the General's more cryptic orders."

"The hell?" Kay noticed a weird item on the side of the cube. It looked like an extra piece of metal that was adhered to it. Stepping forward and taking the cube from Ruby's hands, he examined the mysterious metal piece. It was stuck to the cube with some simple glue-like adhesive, and peeling it off completely revealed an intriguing message that easily caught everyone's eyes.

"This handwriting…" Weiss muttered from beside the writer.

"Mother?" Winter finished for her sister. Kay held the message up for everyone in the room to see:

_The way home needs a second door._

* * *

**Heyo, Kariotic here with another update!**

**Sorry for the wait, work just picked up speed and I like to use my free time to physically and mentally recover. I am still committed to finish this story, so don't worry about it getting dropped!**

**Hope you guys enjoyed reading. See y'all next chapter!**


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